Sorry for the looooonnnnngggg wait.
Chapter Seven
Sheldon and Penny parted ways at the landing of their apartments. Sheldon had invited her over for dinner and a movie. Penny could hear the rest of the guys through the door playing a vigorous round of some video game.
"No thanks, sweetie," she declined. "I have work in the morning and kind of want to take a soak in the bath for awhile." She'd showered earlier after work, but it had been a long day and her feet had started to ache again.
Sheldon's cheeks pinked (almost as if he had pictured her in the bath, but Penny was going to ignore it because there was no way that's where his mind had gone because Sheldon). "Okay. I will see you tomorrow. Thank you for the comic books."
"You're welcome. Thank you for going shopping with me."
"I'd answer with the popular 'anytime', but then I'd be lying."
Penny snorted a little. "Did you just make a joke?"
"Possibly. Did I do a good job?"
Penny patted his arm. "You made me laugh, honey. I think you did."
Sheldon beamed. "I believe I am almost ready for stand-up, now."
"Joke?"
Sheldon looked down at her, completely serious. Penny held back a groan, preparing herself to burst his bubble. Then-
"Bazinga!"
Penny didn't even get irritated at the slightly annoying catch phrase of his. She just smiled, patted his cheek this time and went to her door. "Goodnight, Sheldon," she called over her shoulder and slipped inside her apartment.
She left a trail of clothes to the bathroom where she started filling the bathtub with hot water. Closing the toilet seat, Penny set her phone on top of it, just in case she got any phone calls. Her audition had only been yesterday, but she was eager for some news.
It was almost like she'd had a premonition because the moment she slid into the hot, steaming water of the tub her phone rang. Luckily, she hadn't gotten her hands wet and was able to reach for her phone with ease.
"Hello," she answered, not all bothered that she'd answered the phone while naked. She'd had multiple conversations on the phone while lounging in the tub.
"Is this Penny?" A female voice asked on the other line.
"Yes. Who's calling?"
"Angela Hawthorne. I was sitting on your audition, yesterday."
There had only been one woman at the table for her audition. She hadn't spoken much, not as much as Red, but she had seemed in charge. Immediately Penny's heart started to beat faster. This was it.
"Yes, I remember."
"We were impressed with your audition and would like you come back for a callback. You will be one of five finalists and will be auditioning with the male lead to see how well you play off one another."
Penny was hardly listening, though. She'd gotten a callback for a Marvel movie! She wanted to scream, but she didn't want to scare Angela or risk dropping her phone.
"The audition will be set for Wednesday. Will you be available?"
"Yes," she answered quickly. Even if she wasn't, she'd make herself available.
This was for a Marvel movie!
Sheldon had just sat down in his spot to watch whatever movie Leonard had picked when he heard his name being shouted through the door. His friends turned to look at him, eyes wide.
"What have you done this time?" Leonard asked, voice shaking as if he was afraid of Penny possibly barging through the door.
"I haven't done anything," he answered. "I just left Penny's company ten minutes ago."
When Penny shouted his name again, he noticed that it didn't sound angry. In fact, it reminded him of the last time she'd shouted for him through four doors. It had been when she had fall-
Sheldon shot from his spot and raced across the room to the apartment door. Then, he raced through Penny's door. He didn't even knock, remembering last time. When he ran into Penny's room, he nearly collided with her and froze when he saw she was in a towel. Only a towel.
"Penny!" He exclaimed and covered his eyes. "I thought you were hurt. I thought you fell in the shower, again."
"Sorry, sweetie. It's just that I got a callback to that movie. I'm one of five finalists!"
"Congratulations, Penny," he said, sincerely. "But did you really need to scream for me from across the hall? A simple phone call would have sufficed."
"I'm sorry, Sheldon. I was just so excited."
Sheldon heard her opening drawers and hoped that she was getting dressed. He was growing tired of keeping his eyes covered.
"It's a huge movie. If I get the part, you'll understand why."
"I'm sure I will. I'll get it at this moment if you tell me the movie now."
"Sorry," Penny said and he felt her lightly pinch his arm. "It's a secret until I know for sure if I get the part or not."
Sheldon rolled his eyes but accepted the fact that Penny would be keeping this secret for the long haul. "All right. Now, do you need any further assisstance? I would like to return to the movie going on at my apartment."
"You're free to go, sweetie."
"The invitation is still open. You may join us, Penny."
"Thank you," she smiled. "But I'm going to relax here for the rest of the night. Maybe do my nails or something. You may join me, Sheldon," she repeated his words with a teasing grin.
Sheldon made a face. "No, thank you, Penny."
"Okay. Goodnight, Sheldon. I'll see you later." She went on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek. "And thanks for coming when I called. Again."
"Just don't make it a habit, Penny," he spoke, trying to sound stern. "It distresses me to think you've been harmed."
"I'll only yell for you through my apartment when I'm hurt. I promise. Anything else, I'll call or text."
"Thank you, Penny. I appreciate it. Now, good night." He made his way to the door.
"I hope Leonard had the common courtesy to pause the movie or I will have missed half of it. It'll no longer be worth it to view it any longer."
Penny only laughed softly and patted him on the back as he left her apartment.
Tuesday night, Penny felt sick.
She had returned from her shift at the Cheesecake Factory, where she had served Sheldon his cheeseburger and had jumped into the shower. Her plan was to go to bed early so she got up early to practice more for her audition.
But as she laid in bed, all she could think about was trying not to throw up.
Throwing off the covers and slipping into her slippers, Penny reached for her phone and dialed Sheldon's number. He was going to be mad at, would probably ignore her all tomorrow for waking him up, but she really needed her mind to settle and speaking with Sheldon would do just that.
"Penny, I hope you have a good reason for waking me up," Sheldon said as a way of greeting. His voice was rough and more Texan.
"I can't sleep, Sheldon."
"Now, you have made two of us."
"I'm sorry," she said and meaning it. "Since you're up, now, can you meet me in the hallway?"
"Penny...," he sighed.
"Please."
"Fine," he begrudgingly agreed. "I should be there in five minutes. Goodbye."
When he hung up, Penny slid her phone into the pocket of her pajama shorts and went to the kitchen. In the fridge, she had a bottle of wine that she hadn't opened yet. She grabbed it and two glasses.
Drinking a little would help her sleep, but she hadn't wanted to do it alone. However, in all honesty, she knew Sheldon wouldn't drink, so she would still be drinking by herself, but someone would still be there.
Well...maybe.
Sheldon was already in the hallway when Penny walked through her door. He didn't look too happy about it, either and when his eyes fell on the wine, he sighed. "Penny, please tell me you didn't wake me up so you could try to make me drink."
"I didn't. I promise. Can we go up to the roof? Please."
"Very well."
Penny led the way, forever grateful to Sheldon. He could have turned and walked back into his apartment and bed, but he hadn't.
The night air was cool when Penny stepped through the door. She waited for Sheldon to step onto the roof before dragging a cinder block to prop the door open. The last thing she wanted to happen was for them to get stuck up there.
Sheldon walked over to the edge of the roof and Penny followed. She set the bottle of wine and glasses on the ledge between them. Sheldon glanced down at the wine and looked out at the city.
"You may pour me a small amount, Penny."
Penny wanted to hug him, but kept her hands to herself. "Okay, sweetie." She poured about two swallows in his glass and filled hers halfway.
She watched as Sheldon brought the cup to his lips and took a sip. He made a face, but didn't spit the liquid out. Instead, he took another sip before setting the glass down on the edge.
"So, what is keeping you up, Penny?"
Penny swallowed a drink before answering, "The audition tomorrow. I'm to run lines with the main male actor. What if I get so star struck that I don't do well."
"You will just have to remember this is your job, Penny. You have to be professional. They will not want an actress who is just going to faun over the male lead."
Penny took another drink before sighing. "I know, but what if it's Johnny Depp?"
"Hm. You do love Johnny Depp."
"I do love him," she agreed.
"But you will still need to be professional while acting alongside him. Afterwards, you can go into a bathroom and screech or whatever that sound you make is when you see something you love.
"Also," he added. "You will be able to 'fangirl' when you go to the Avengers priemiere. I know of several actors there that you are particular fond of."
"Like Robert Downey Jr?"
"Like Robert Downey Jr."
"And Chris Evans?"
Sheldon sighed, "And Chris Evans."
"Also, Benedict Cumberbatch, Sebastian Stan, Chris Hemsworth, Chadwick-"
"Penny," Sheldon stopped her with a hand on her wrist and an exasperated look on his face. "I understand."
"I know," she smirked. "I like to annoy you, sometimes."
"Only sometimes, Penny?"
"Hmm," she hummed and smiled at him over the rim of her glass. The wine was starting to make her feel warm, but it would take a little more to make her tipsy. So, she finished her half glass and filled it halfway again. She needed to pace herself.
Sheldon finished his in one last, disgusted gulp and waved off any more when Penny offered the bottle. "I only said I would have a small amount, Penny."
She pouted a little, but put the bottle down. "Thank you for coming up here with me, Sheldon. I didn't want to be alone."
"This is what best friends do," he said. "Please don't make it a habit, though. My work will surely suffer if I do not get my required amount of sleep."
"Don't worry. Once I know if I got this part or not, I shouldn't have nights like this."
"Would you like to go over the scene you've rehearsed for tomorrow?"
Penny almost agreed, but stopped herself. "Sorry, Sheldon. If I do the scene in front of you, you'll know the movie instantly."
"You still won't tell me?"
"The moment I get the part, I will." She reached for his hand and squeezed. "I promise."
"I like that."
Penny blinked a little. "Like what?" He had to know she'd tell him no matter what.
"That you said you were getting the part. Not if."
Penny felt her face heat for a moment. For some reason, it sounded so unlike Sheldon to say something like that, but she liked it. Setting down her glass, she gave him a brief hug.
"I like it, too."
When I started writing this, the movie Penny was auditioning for was only rumored. Now, it's about to come out. (You all probably know what it is now). I don't know if that will change what I had planned for this story. We'll see, I guess.
Thanks for reading!
