After a quick breakfast, Sheldon and Amy headed to the vendor booths to scope out the ones they ran out of time to see the day before.
They marveled at the myriad of flag pole toppers that came in almost every imaginable design by a company simply named 'Toppers'.
Amy picked up a gold eagle and held it in her palm. "We should do a show about flag accessories."
"We should. I wonder if this company would also be willing to offer us a discount if we do some name dropping for them."
Sheldon cleared his throat to get the man's attention.
"How may I help you?"
"Hi, I'm Dr. Sheldon Cooper, and this is my girlfriend Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler. You may know us from our popular internet show, Fun With Flags."
"I'm sorry, I've never heard of it."
Sheldon looked at him incredulously.
"Nah, I'm just kidding you. I love your show!"
A man walking by in a dress shirt and khakis overheard the conversation and ambled over.
"Hi. I'm Dan Humphrey, one of the association's board members." He held out his hand to the couple, which they shook politely.
"The press is here, and they're looking for people to interview. Since you already have experience in front of the camera, would you be willing to speak with them?"
"Amy, did you hear that? We'll be on national TV."
"Actually, it's KTVU - the Bay Area news team..."
Sheldon's face fell. "Well that's disappointing, but I suppose it will still get us more exposure. We'll do it," he agreed.
Amy willingly followed her boyfriend and the cameraman to an area the reporter deemed 'the perfect spot', which happened to be next to the Design-a-Flag booth. She smiled upon noticing that Chad had prominently displayed the skunk and zombie flags on the wall behind him.
Prior to filming, the reporter took down their names and asked them to give a brief description about their show. Sheldon rambled about every minute detail until his girlfriend laid her hand on his arm and gave him a look signaling him to wrap it up.
They were told not to be surprised when the segment was shortened during editing, then the reporter gestured for the camera to roll.
The couple waited patiently as he set the scene.
"...the Hilton hotel in downtown San Jose where the 50th annual North American Vexillology meeting is winding down today. This three-day event..."
Sheldon whispered in his girlfriend's ear, "Who's long winded now?"
She was grateful the microphone couldn't pick up his voice, and the camera was not yet facing them. After what Sheldon later remarked was 'an eternity', the reporter turned to them with the mic.
The lanky physicist excitedly spoke of his love for flags and defined vexillology as 'the study of flags'. Amy occasionally piped up with fun facts.
Sheldon segued into an explanation of their 'wildly popular' internet show. "Actually instead of telling the viewers about it, let's show them."
He looked at Amy who looked to the reporter for permission.
"Alright, but please keep it brief."
"Hello, I'm Dr. Sheldon Cooper."
"And I'm Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler."
"Welcome to a special edition of Fun With Flags. Today we are broadcasting from the North American Vexillogical Association meeting, or NAVA for short..."
Soon a crowd began to gather. Amy noticed Trina and Justin in the crowd and gave them a tiny wave. Several guests took out their phones to record the mini impromptu show.
After the news team left to interview more guests, Amy told her boyfriend she was going to talk to Trina for a few minutes. Once she was out of earshot, Sheldon asked Chad if he could purchase the zombie and skunk flags. He nodded in agreement then pulled the flags from the wall. The man deducted 20% off as his company would surely gain more attention after the segment aired later that night.
He thanked him and promised to use the flags in his next show as well as place an order with his own designs then slipped out of the room to hide the items in his suitcase. He returned to the ballroom a few minutes later, sidling up to his girlfriend.
"I was just telling Amy that Justin and I watched an episode of Fun With Flags on YouTube last night. She made such a cute kangaroo."
Sheldon peered down at his girlfriend, his lips turning up slightly. "She did," he concurred. "Make sure you catch all 246 episodes. Our next one will feature custom-made flags. Chad over there," he pointed towards the booth, "offered us a 20% discount if we mention him in the show."
When the group turned to glance at the booth, Amy's face fell.
"What's wrong?" her new friend asked.
"There were two flags on the wall I thought about purchasing, but I see they're gone now."
Sheldon's eye twitched, and he had to avert his gaze so he didn't give himself away.
The two couples decided to join each other for lunch before Justin and Trina drove back home. The scientists exchanged phone numbers and email addresses with the other couple who, much to their surprise, lived in Anaheim.
"We're practically neighbors," Amy mused.
"I'd hardly call 35 miles apart neighbors. On a Good day it would take 40 minutes..."
"Sheldon..."
The girls hugged and the guys shook hands as they parted.
xxx
At 1:45, Sheldon and Amy entered the Regis ballroom to get in line for next year's flag design voting.
Dan Humphrey approached them. "Dr. Cooper. We're so glad to have you join our judges panel today."
"No, thank you for choosing me to participate."
"We have set up a special area over there," Dan gestured towards the back of the room where the other three judges were already seated, "for the judges."
Sheldon's eyes followed the other man's finger. "Why aren't they in line to vote?"
"We felt it would be in the best interest of the association and the designers to have the judges vote only once - for the top two choices."
"Will I at least be able to see all the entries?"
"Once the voting is complete and the panel has selected the winning design, we will allow you to view all the entries."
"Very well. Amy, make sure you choose the best one," he instructed before heading towards the other judges.
Dan dragged a divider in front of the panel to block their view of the submissions. Another board member unveiled the designs.
Amy surveyed the sketches closely. Each design was beautifully done, so she took her time selecting the one she felt was most deserving. Once all the votes were in, the board members counted the ballots then presented the judges with the top two candidates.
"Hmmm..." Sheldon murmured as he scrutinized the choices. He twisted his head from side to side, getting a view of all angles.
The other judges filled out their ballots and sat back.
"Can I make a suggestion?"
"What's that, Dr. Cooper?" Dan asked.
"I believe flag number one would be more striking if the star was blue rather than green. Its design is superior to flag number two, but flag number two's color combination is more appealing. Is it possible to alter them?"
"I'm sorry, we must vote for the designs as they are."
After much deliberation, he made his decision. The divider was removed, and the judges were ushered to the front of the room to rejoin the voters.
Dan addressed the group. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have a tie. I would like to invite our association's president to make the deciding vote."
The president carefully examined each entry. He then stood and faced the group. "And the winner is design number two!"
Everyone but Sheldon cheered. Amy rested her hand on his knee, and he turned to her defeated.
"I'm sorry your choice didn't win," she said soothingly. "But at least you had the opportunity to be a part of the panel."
"If only they had listened to my suggestion," he lamented.
She stood. "Come on. Let's make the most of the time we have left here. There's one more lecture. This one sounds really thought provoking."
He unfolded his tall frame from his chair and followed her into the hall.
A/N: I did some research after learning that Shamy would be attending a real-life convention on the show. The North American Vexillogical Association is a real association and will be hosting its 50th meeting in San Jose this year. The yearly flag judging is also part of the meeting. Most of the other details are purely a product of my imagination.
