Sorry for the few days wait. Sorry about that; tests suck. I still don't own anything.
"God, do I hate stairs," Penny announced as the gang reached the fourth floor.
"Me, too," Howard said. "You get no privacy on stairs, especially when the elevator is not an option."
Penny looked at him. "Yeah, no, that's not really why I hate stairs."
Raj whispered to Howard. "Okay, why then?"
"For crying out loud people, can't you see how she's hunching over like someone with a spine problem?" Sheldon said, looking as if the reason should be obvious. "Penny is obviously experiencing back pain related to her current physical condition."
"Oh." Both Raj and Howard looked disappointed as the fivesome entered the apartment. They passed out the food that Penny had brought back from the Cheesecake Factory and sat down to eat. They were perhaps halfway through the meal when Leonard noticed that Penny was leaning hard against the back of her chair. "What are you doing?"
"Bracing myself. It helps keep my back straight."
"That looks really…weird," he said as Penny put the food in her mouth while keeping her chin at an obtuse angle to the floor. "But…okay…" he went back to eating.
Sheldon toyed with his barbecue bacon cheeseburger. "Are you sure no one touched this with bare hands?"
"God, yes, Sheldon," Penny said. "We all wore gloves. We always do."
"Did you package this or did Nancy?"
"Nancy? Who…no, Sheldon, Nancy did not package it. She…um…made sure that I did it." Leonard and Howard looked at her in confusion, and when Sheldon looked away she rolled her eyes. They grinned knowingly.
Leonard was smiling in Penny's direction when he saw her wince. "What's the matter?"
"I've got feet in my ribs," she said, shifting position because she'd read that it could help. It didn't. "Ow," she said, half laughing. She poked her stomach gently. "Turn over, will you?" The kicking game again, harder, as if the baby was showing its mother that she really couldn't do anything about it.
"Stubborn little bugger, huh?" Leonard asked.
"Takes after you," she quipped.
"Oh, I believe that's what society would call a burn, am I right?" Sheldon asked.
"Shut up, Sheldon," Leonard said. He turned to Penny. "Try walking around."
"Back pain or ribs-as-punching-bag; it's just the lesser of two evils, isn't it?" She said, slowly rising to her feet.
"Does anyone want to know how that term originated?" Sheldon asked. He got four death glares and backed down. "Maybe some other time."
"Maybe," Leonard said sarcastically. He looked at the table. "Penny, your phone's vibrating."
She came around the couch and picked it up. A confused look came on her face, and she headed toward the door. "I'll be right back."
"Well, I hope it's no one funny, or else we'll hear that annoying laugh of hers through the door," Sheldon said, glancing toward it.
"I hope it is someone funny, and her laugh will drown out you," Howard said dryly.
Leonard was quiet, looking at the door. "She had an odd look on her face; did any of you notice that?"
Raj, Sheldon, and Howard looked up and said at the same time, "no." It didn't make Leonard feel any better, and he watched the door until it opened nearly five minutes later. Penny stuck her head in. "Leonard?"
Her voice was quiet but had a shrill tone to it, and he got up and joined her in the hall. She was pale, and she looked on the verge of tears. She had her phone in her left hand, clutching it with white knuckles. "Penny, what's wrong now?" He was terrified that something was wrong, with either Penny or the baby. They were six weeks away, so damn close…was their excitement over becoming a family about to be destroyed and replaced by fear, or despair?
"My doctor…" Penny said, "She's dead."
"What happened?"
"Car accident…on her way home from work." Penny started to cry, and Leonard put his arms around her. "Leonard, what am I going to do now? I trusted her; I was comfortable around her! Now I'll need a new doctor, one who hasn't been with me from the start…" She broke down in fresh tears Leonard flinched as she dug her nails into his back, but he didn't protest and just let her cry it out. He knew how much she liked Dr. Pepper, and he had, too, despite only meeting her three times. She was kind, understanding, and was good at her job.
Leonard led Penny into her apartment and sat next to her on the couch. "Calm down, Penny," he said, knowing his words wouldn't help much but feeling the need to talk anyway. "Accidents happen; we just need to move on and play the cards we're dealt."
Penny looked up at him, her eyes red. "It's not just Dr. Pepper, Leonard. It's exactly what you said, accidents happen. What if something like that happens to me, or you?" Her voice quivered. "She's got five children, Leonard! They're like, all under eight years old. What if something happens to us and we leave our baby without a parent?" She buried her head in his chest. "It's not just about us anymore, Leonard. We're going to be responsible for someone else…"
Leonard couldn't tell if she was more afraid of one of them dying or of her having to finish this pregnancy with a new doctor. But that phone call had swept away all the good feelings she had had about their baby and replaced it with a fear that, whether rational or not, was real and consuming. All he could do was hold her and assure her that it would be okay, although he didn't really know that himself.
I think there'll be two to four more chapters, depending on how I want to split things up. Review, please, and again, thanks to everyone who has so far!