OOOHHH FINALLY! I was TOO EXCITED to write this chapter. I hope you guys love it. It was so much fun to write! R and R please!

…

It was early morning. Eli got up and trudged to the kitchen for coffee. She had a meeting with her publisher this morning; but, it was hard to be excited this early. Just her luck, she scowled into the empty jar. They were out.

"Ugh," Eli wished Sheldon were here. He and the boys had gone to New York for some symposium and it was as if the rythyms of her life were thrown off without him here. With a sigh, Eli slipped on her fluffy pink slippers and tightened her robe as she plodded across the hall.

"Penny," She rapped lightly on the door.

"Good morning," Penny grumbled. Neither woman was particularly fond of the day before noon.

"Hey, Penny, do you have any-" a sudden wave of horrible nausea hit Eli. She pushed past Penny and ran to the bathroom where she promptly vomitted.

…

"I don't understand," moaned Eli as Penny placed a cool wash cloth on her neck. "Could it have been something I ate?" She turned her head and heaved into the toilet but there was nothing left to throw up.

"Eli, we all ate the same pizza last night," she held her friend's hair off of her sweaty face.

They sat on the bathroom floor listening to Eli's heavy breathing.

"Eli," Penny inquired cautiously, "could it be, you know, morning sickness?"

"Pregnant!"

"I mean it's a possiblity, right?"

"Well, yess, but…" her eyes glazed over as she did some quick calculations. In her head she counted back the days. She closed her eyes and tried to focus; but, all she could see was a clutter of dates and numbers.

In her momentary pause, Penny pulled out her phone.

"Who are you calling?"

"Bernadette; she's been through this before."

Forty five minutes later, Bernadette came in the door carying a bag from the pharmacy. Penny was in the kitchen handing Eli saltine crackers and popping open a ginger ale. Eli sprang up out of her chair as soon as the door opened.

"Thank God, Bernadette. You get it?" Bernadette handed her a box and Eli grabbed it as she rushed to the bathroom.

…

Eli contemplated her future as she stared down at the pregnancy test.

She and Sheldon had been married nearly two years already; but, she hadn't expected a baby to come so soon. Would she even make a good mother?

A soft knock echoed in the bathroom.

"Hey, Eli," It was Bernadette's tiny voice. Eli showed her the test.

"Does Sheldon know?"

Sheldon? Eli nodded her head. What would Sheldon think? Did he even want to start a family? She thought of Sheldon when he was child and now as a father. She thought of the child growing within her and clutched her abdomen affectionately. Would he have her eyes or Sheldon's? What if it was a girl? Eli shook with excitement.

Please, Sheldon, hurry home.

…

"Eli, you've been acting strangely ever since I returned home. What's going on?" Sheldon sent her a raised brow as he offered her a mug of tea.

"Oh, we're all just excited to see you." She teased.

"Mm, yes, Penny was excied; but, by the way she whisked Leonard off to their apartment, no doubt for a conjugal encounter, it was not me who she was excited to see." He sat in his spot and sipped his tea.

"Sheldon, I didn't mean Penny and I."

"Bernadette?"

"Nope!"

"Eli, you're blushing. You always blush when you have a secret. Spill, sister."

Eli took her husband's hands, "Sheldon, honey, there's going to be big change around here." He still didn't get it. She brought his hands to rest on her abdomen. His inquisitive eyes followed their movement. For a moment, his brows furrowed in concentration. Then, his face relaxed as his lips formed a smal "o".

"Eli," he was still looking at his hands on her stomach. She ran her hands through his hair and over his ears.

"Yes?"

"How can this be? We took all of the necessary precautions."

"There's always still a chance."

His eyes searched hers. "Are you sure?"

She shook her head in confirmation, "I went to the doctor yesterday." She waited for some kind of emotional response. He gently placed his other hand on her stomach, smiling from ear to ear. Eli laughed her windchime laugh and kissed him.

Sheldon jumped up and grabbed his marble notebook from a drawer in his desk.

"Okay, you haven't had any alcohol since I've been gone have you? Has your diet been regular? What about your stress."

"Sheldon, calm down." She placed a hand on his arm, "He's only a few cells right now. This can wait, can't it? Come on, let's just celebrate. You're home. Everyone is healthy." She cast him a stern glare, "Everyone."

Sheldon fell back onto the sofa. "Everyone," he mouthed.

"Now," called Eli from the kitchen, "Since there will be no champagne is my system for the next nine months, there better be ice cream in the freezer."

…

"So?" asked Howard, "how is the little tot." he jazzed his shoulders with a grin.

"See for yourself." Eli was in the kitchen and on her way back to the couch pulled the blotchy black and white image from under its magnet on the refrigerator.

"Wow, Mini Cooper's getting big." Penny noted.

"Penny, I would appreciate if you would stop calling the baby that." Sheldon scowled at her.

"Sorry; but, you have to admit, it's cute in an ironic way."

"No, the fact that the child will be a small addition to the Cooper family is coincidentally, not ironically, similar to a type of automobile."

Eli rolled her eyes. "I think it's great, Penny." She rubbed her distended belly, "Mini Cooper."

"Sheldon," she told her husband, "you're overruled."

"Well, I would have a counter proposal; but, since you continue to protest knowing the child's gender, I have none to offer."

"You mean you could know if it's a boy or girl already?"

"Yes, Eli is twenty weeks along. Today's sonogram could have determined the gender."

"Howie and I insisted on knowing," said Bernadette, "we knew Samuel was a boy before he was born."

"I just like the thrill," said Eli as she sat down.

"But how can you start decorating the baby's room or shopping?"

"After some discussion," said Sheldon, "we decided to paint the room either green or blue. That way, even if it does end up being a girl, we can decorate with an english fairy garden or mermaid theme!" he bounced with excitement.

Raj whispered into Howard's ear.

"Raj would like to know if you've decided on any names."

…

"Okay, Sheldon, how about Beatrice?"

"Oh, little Betty will surely be beaten up. And 'sweaty' rhymes with 'Betty'."

"Excuse me, mister, but Beatrice was the female protagonist of Much Ado About Nothing! She was strong-willed, brave, considerate, witty."

"As I am well aware," Sheldon turned from his whiteboard and gave her a wide-eyed stare of disaproval, "however, simply because she is the star of your favorite Shakespeare play, doesn't mean she has a name appropriate for the modern world."

"And Kirk does? What would the other kids think of little Tiberius.?" Sheldon put out his lower lip.

"Alright, alright, what else do you have for a girl?" She looked over his shoulder at his board. "Leia, no. Sonya?"

"Sonya Kovalevsky was a great mathematician."

"Oh," replied Eli, difinitely not.

"I like Jane. As in Jane Austen."

"Or Jane Goodall," clarified Sheldon.

"Okay, we can compromise with Jane." She circled it in red marker. "What else? Mary?"

"Leakey,"

"Okay, Mary Leakey the palaeoanthropologist or Mary Shelly, the author."

"I will not have my daughter assosciated with Doctor Frankenstein or his monster," Sheldon grimaced, erasing the name.

"Frankenstein was a classic piece of literature! And, like cavemen are any better?"

"Australopithecus, actually," mumbled Sheldon under his breath.

"Okay, Mary is definitely out. What's all this?" Eli waved her hand infront of the myriad of characters near the bottom of the board.

"I was toying around with some latin," said Sheldon, leaning a fist against the board.

"That's great; but, what does it say?"

"This one is my favorite; Sophia." Sheldon smiled cutely.

"Sheldon, that's perfect. Sophia: wisdom." She smiled at her husband. "Sophia Jane Cooper. And a boy?"

"Well," Sheldon led her over to another board. Eli scanned the names.

"Bruce, Peter, Alan, Clark, Steven, Tony, and Bruce again. Sheldon, these are all comic book characters!"

"Yes," Sheldon shielded the board from her eraser, "What I would have given for a super hero name as a child! And most of them are Avengers. You said that the Avengers were your favorite conglomeration of super heroes. Look, see Steven. Steve Rogers was Captain America, the First Avenger. Please, Eli," he begged.

"Okay," Eli succumbed to the koala face. Not fair. "We'll use Roger as a middle name."

"Yes!" Sheldon fist pumped.

"I was thinking William."

"As in your brother? I thought you weren't concerned about family names."

"William Shakespeare."

"Of course," Sheldon shook his head. "What about Isaac?"

"Isaac Newton?" Eli pondered this for a moment. "I could work Isaac."

"So it's settled. William Roger Isaac Cooper for a boy and Sophia Jane Cooper for a girl."

"Here that, kid." Eli cradled her considerable baby bump, "we got you covered."

…

"Good afternoon," Sheldon greeted Eli as he set his keys in the bowl by the door and slipped off his shoulder bag

"Hello," Eli struggled to stand from her seat on the couch. Sheldon rushed to asist her. "I'm okay." She kissed him over the bulge of her stomach.

Eli found his concern for her endearing, however, as her pregnancy progressed, he got closer and closer to her side and it grew harder and harder to pry him away. She had been on a specific prenatal health regime since day one. Her exercise was regulated. Every day, Sheldon would record her health and vitals in that marble notebook of his. Though the practice was slightly obtrusive to her schedule, that was Sheldon. She smiled, knowing inside, that it was his own, oddball way to show concern. There was only so much Sheldon could do to ensure the development of his child. Eli understood his need to do all that he could to optomize the health of his family. So, she put up with his prodding, stayed off her feet, and constanly played classical music to "stimulate the baby's mind from within the womb."

"Ooh," Eli swooned at the shopping bag he carried, "did you go to the bookstore?"

Sheldon laughed lightly. Eli's relationship with the book shop was equivalent to that of an alcoholic and the local pub. "Yes." He opened the bag and began to pull out books. "By the way, Renee wishes you well." Renee was the proprietor of the establishment.

"How sweet," Eli waddled over to Sheldon.

"Yes, it is unfortuanate that you cannot make your usual visits in your current state."

Eli was very far along in her pregnancy and had opted to temporarily stop her daily visits to the book store. Just picking up Sheldon's purchased books, she caught the faint aroma of coffee and new books. She inhaled the heady scent. She needed to have this baby. The kid kept her away from her books. Sheldon's arm wrapped around her for support as she looked over the titles. There was a whole collection on parenting and fatherhood.

"Sheldon," she asked with sweet concern, "are you afraid you won't make a good father?" He did not answer. He only looked down at his loafers. "Honey?" she put a hand on his shoulder.

"Eli, I'm positive that you would make a great mother; however, I do have doubts."

"Doubts?"

"Yes. See, when I was growing up, I never really established that bond between father and son. While my dad was out cavorting with the other menfolk, shooting, watching footbal, and what not, I stayed home. With my makeshift lab, I was happy to remain behind." He looked down at her with fearful blue eyes. "How can I be a good father, when I-"

Eli cut him off there, "Sheldon, you don't have to be the most masculine figure in the world to make a good father. I mean, just look at the Wolowitzes! All that matters is that you open your heart." She stroked his chin, "You have a limitless heart, Sheldon Cooper. Our baby is lucky to have you for a father."

He smiled weakly, "Eli-"

"OH!"

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, here," She grabbed his hand and plcaed it on her middle. "Right there. Do you feel it?"

Like trilling high notes in the upper octaves of a piano, Sheldon felt his child press against his hand in small pangs of fluttering pressure. He had felt his child move before; but, each time was a brand new, thrilling experience. With Eli's words in mind, Sheldon realized he looked forward to the moment when they would actually become parents. He couldn't wait to meet this tiny person who was half of himself and half of Eli, sweet, kind, loving Eli.

His heart went out to this small life form. He knew in that instant, he would make a good father. He may not be the perfect parent, but he would expend every ounce of his energy trying to be. Sheldon had so much to teach this child. This was his progeny, his continuum.

"See?" whispered Eli. They sat on the couch together.

Sheldon's hands never left Eli's stomach. After a moment of companionable silence, Sheldon began to softly sing,

"Two and two are four. Four and four are eight. Eight and eight are sixteen. Sixteen and sixteen are thirty-two."

"What are you doing?"

"Shh," Sheldon placed his ear where his hand had been.

"Inchworm, Inchworm, measuring the marigolds, you and your arithmatic, you'll probrably go far."

The baby kicked at the sound of its father's voice. Eli smiled excitedly, "It knows your voice!"

Sheldon continued to sing, "Inchworm, Inchworm, measuring the marigolds, seems to me, you'd stop and see how beautiful they are."

…

"Sheldon!" A hand clamped itself to his forearm.

"Ah, Danger! Danger." Sheldon bolted upright in the darkness of their bedroom.

"Sheldon," Eli doubled over beside him, "Sheldon, it's time."

Thanks to Sheldon's meticulous planning, everything was packed and ready to go. Sheldon quickly dressed, gathered the pre-packed bag, and helped his wife into the hallway.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Penny and Leonard!"

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Penny and Leonard!"

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"PENNY AND LEONARD!"

"What, Sheldon?" Leonard stumbled into the doorway, shoving his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. One look at Eli and he tripped over his feet charging back into the apartment.

"Penny, we've gotta go!"

…

Twenty excruciating hours later, a newborn cried out with its first breath of air. It was the greatest sound Sheldon had ever heard. The rest of his world blurred away in the peripherey. His mind focused on that one, healthy wail.

Before long, the nurse handed Eli her daughter and tears of joy replaced tears of pain.

"Oh, Sheldon, look, your eyes." Sophie's eyes were the same clear blue. "But my hair. Oh dear." She chortled past her exhaustion. Shedlon could not call his voice from his throat. He watched as Eli stroked the wrinkled face with the back of her fingers.

"Hi baby," she looked up at Sheldon then back down at their child, "Hi, Sweat Pea. Sheldon, she's perfect."

…

Later, when Eli was fast asleep, Sheldon held his daughter. He had never before seen anything so beautiful. Sophie's tiny hand grasped his right thumb as he rocked back and forth. Bright new eyes blinked at him. Her eyes were deep with comprehension and understanding. They were familiar. They were his eyes.

…

AN: EEEKKK! Betcha didn't see that coming! Or maybe you did, whatevs. I couldn't resist! Oh, I am such a sap. And the same old same old: Suggestions? Comments? Concerns? Additions? Just click the little doob-lee-doo down below and leave a comment! Muchas Gracias!