(Bowling was a disaster. What will Sheldon do now, especially in the face of Amy's demands?)
Leonard could tell his girlfriend was angry. He knew it was going to take quite a bit of cajoling to make her happy. So he dropped Sheldon off at the apartment and he and Priya left for her place. No sense arguing in front of Sheldon. It just made him upset. That suited Sheldon just fine. He had no interest in listening to them fight, or make up. He was almost on the second floor when he heard the lobby door open and Penny humming. He turned and waited.
Her eyes were on her mail as she neared him. He cleared his throat when she got close. Penny jumped and dropped a few letters. He scooped them up before she could and started to walk up the stairs again. Penny fell in beside him and held out her hand. Sheldon reluctantly handed her the mail.
"Penny, why…" he trailed off uncertainly. She looked up at him patiently. He took a deep breath. "When did you start hanging out with Wheaton?"
Penny shrugged. "I waited on him at the Cheesecake Factory. His wife asked how we knew each other and I mentioned the bowling tournament. Turns out she loves to bowl. So a couple of days later, Wil showed up at work and said Anne wanted to know if I would like to join them for a game. I asked Raj to come along. A week or so later Anne invited me and Raj to a dinner party. We took them out to lunch. They are very nice people and fun to talk to. A few days ago Raj and I decided to go bowling again, so I called Anne and invited her and Wil along. If you gave him a chance, you would probably get along."
Sheldon snorted. "He cheated me out of two tournaments, Penny. He is NOT a nice guy."
Penny sighed. "Well that's your opinion. Goodnight." She moved to her door and was shocked to have him grab her arm. He immediately dropped it and shuffled back a step.
"Penny," he mumbled, "it has come to my attention that you no longer spend very much time with me. I was wondering if you would like to come over now for some tea or a movie." He glanced up at her and saw a flicker of pain in her eyes. It made him cringe to know it was him that put it there.
Penny leaned back into her door. "Sheldon, let me ask you a question. If Amy was here, would you still invite me over?"
He wanted to say yes. He knew he should say yes. He dropped his eyes to the floor. "I don't know," he whispered.
Penny closed her eyes for several seconds and willed away the tears threatening to form. "And that is why I have to say thank you for your invitation, but I must decline. Goodnight Sheldon." She went into her apartment and shut the door firmly.
Sheldon stood there for several minutes before he let himself into his own apartment. He almost wished Leonard and Priya were there. The silence was deafening.