With Leonard having booked extended time off of work and Penny's end-of-semester project and essay hand-ins, the weeks up until their departure for Nebraska flew by quickly. They celebrated Penny's birthday with a quiet dinner together and attended a university fundraising party with great success for Leonard's department. Before they knew it, the extra hours they were respectively putting in to their workloads had been worked away and they were off to the airport.

The flight gave Penny time to constructively reflect on what had happened between now and the last time she'd been flying to Nebraska - even though that had been from London, she felt almost as though her hometown was in the middle of these two significant journeys. The first had been the conclusion of a two-year struggle in which she had tackled loss, loneliness and depression. Penny was proud of herself; despite the amount of doubt she had had in herself over that time, she had come out of it strong and had allowed herself the opportunity to chase the career she had been waiting for. Now, she was visiting home after a rollercoaster ride including a miscarriage, successful commercials, and a newfound dream in life that came with a deeper understanding of her own self.

She giggled at that phrase as she thought it; a deeper understanding of myself. It sounded quite pretentious in her mind, as though she was using her Psychology study skills on her own self in a philosophical manner - the idea of which made her giggle even more. Leonard raised a brow at her sudden laughter. "What're you laughing at?"

Turning her head to face him, Penny smiled. "I was having such a serious train of thought there, and then the voice in my head that thinks things got all... pompous. It made me laugh."

"Pompous? Really?"

"Yes, pompous. There aren't enough opportunities to use that word, and this was one of those rare moments where you can. So I did." Penny tapped his nose. "And yes, I do know funny words like that."

"I wasn't questing your knowledge of the word, just your use of it. It really is rarely used."

"Pompous. Kinda reminds me of Pom Bears." Penny mused. "You know, those teddy bear shaped chips."

"Strange association." Leonard chuckled.

"Whatever." Penny shuffled slightly so she could lean her head comfortably on his shoulder. "Can you believe how much we've gone through since we last came to Nebraska?"

"It been a lot that we've gone through." Leonard agreed, squeezing Penny's arm gently. "Both good and bad things. But we got through them all... you know, jumped the hurdles. Knocked a few down and tried again."

Frowning, Penny shut her eyes. "Hopefully when we get back from Nebraska this time there'll be less bad things... no bad things happen. I don't think there's anything left for the universe to throw at me."

"No. I think it's made you suffer enough."

They sat in thoughtful silence for a moment, before Penny giggled again. "I suppose it could throw a meteor at me. And then you could get your Hulk on and protect me from that meteor. I mean, I'd rather it didn't, but at this point I think a meteor is next in line. Do me a favour and use your brain power to send the meteor on a non-Penny trajectory, will you?"

"Oh, sweetheart!" Meryl practically ran down the driveway when Wyatt's car pulled up and Leonard had opened the door for Penny, enveloping her daughter in a tight hug.

Penny reciprocated the hug, before trying to pull away from her mother. "Mom," she warned, "it's okay. I'm okay. I told you. You already saw me like a few weeks ago. And I'm wearing this huge coat and you're kind of beginning to suffocate me."

"Sorry, sorry," Meryl pulled back, quickly dabbing at her eyes before moving on to Leonard and enveloping him in a hug instead. "It's so great to see you again, Leonard."

Rolling her eyes, Penny shook her head at her mothers antics and helped Wyatt get their bags out the boot of the car. Tugging at her boyfriends jacket to rescue him from the hug, she grinned and handed him over his suitcase before going to get her own from her father. "It's okay, Daddy, I can take my own suitcase."

Wyatt looked over at Leonard, who gave him at subtle nod, before handing Penny back her suitcase. While Penny was jumping over hurdles at impressive speeds, she had maintained her need to do things for herself - whether it was to prove herself or simply because she found it comforting to be in control of the little things, he had no idea. Meryl led them all inside, Leonard following Penny and Wyatt bringing up the rear.

"Why don't you two take your things to Penny's room and we'll call you when dinner's ready." Meryl suggested. "It's got about twenty minutes left."

The first evening was the most difficult for Penny, just as it had been the last time she had come home. Despite their best efforts, her parents were noticeably more cautious about what they discussed and brought up. Penny almost wanted her mother to be putting them in awkward situations by teasing them about grandchildren and the two extra bedrooms at their apartment or keeping quiet in her bedroom until they'd gone to bed so they didn't hear anything on the way. Even her father would be jokingly checking up on the 'grandkids situation', yet now he remained mostly silent. She'd grown up with her mother teasing and making jokes, so their absence was heavy in the conversations they had. After the first couple of hours, she could feel her parents running out of 'safe' topics and long silences began to fill the room - something she definitely wasn't used to with her parents. When it hit ten, Penny announced that she was going to go for an early night, something Leonard was happy to go along with. The silences had been uncomfortable and he could tell they were beginning to stress Penny out.

"This is just ridiculous," Penny grumbled as she fell onto the bed, covering her forehead and eyes with her hands. "Why are they acting as if they just... can't talk to me about like, anything? It's... Mom was never like this around me. She doesn't have to be."

Sitting beside her on the bed, Leonard shrugged. "They're not with us all the time, maybe they just need some time to work it out for themselves - that you're okay with talking about stuff, that you notice these things and that it's harder this way."

"But they're my parents, Leonard!" Penny sat up, groaning. "I don't want to have to sit with them uncomfortably just because they're worried they'll say something that's going to upset me."

"Perhaps you just need to tell them."

"What, just go up to them like, hey, stop walking on egg-shells around me, I'm not gonna start crying if you mention babies and families and emotions?" Penny rolled her eyes. "I know it was different last time, last time I didn't want to talk about it - but I never wanted to be treated differently because of it. And they are, maybe they don't see it but they are."

"They just need some time to see that; that you're so much stronger than they think. I see it, and they will too." Leonard assured her. She dropped her head to his shoulder and he put one arm around her, using his free hand to hold one of hers. "They know, they just need to see. Be patient with them; they're you're parents. They just care about you very much."

"I told my Mom when they came to stay over, they don't need to be like this around me. And we even spoke about how it's different for her and Dad, because you're with me all the time so you know me better - you know how to be around me no matter what. They haven't had that since I was eighteen." Penny frowned. "But I still wish they would treat me the same as they always did. I always say I hate it but I miss them making jokes about stupid things. I miss having to tell Mom off for asking how many kids you wanna have, or Dad for asking when his grandkids are gonna arrive. I'm not saying that would be easy to take, at least at first, but it would be easier than... this."

"I know. I get that."

Lifting her head, Penny raised her brows. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Do you prefer it like this? Does it feel different to you?"

Nodding slowly, Leonard squeezed her hand gently. "It feels different. I'm not sure I prefer it, but to be honest I'm not sure I'd want to be joking about this kind of stuff just yet." He admitted. "Mainly because it always felt a little awkward before, so I'm not sure if it's just because of that or if maybe I haven't had the time to get there yet."

Biting her lip, Penny looked at him for a moment and shifted her position so she was sitting with her legs beneath her. She opened her mouth to speak, but as she did so she seemed to change her mind. Her confidence faltered as she decided that this wasn't the best time to talk about things. "You're right," she said instead. "Things are gonna work out with them. And it'll be easier when Bridge gets here - she's quite good at sensing the tone, you know. Can't keep her mouth shut but... yeah." Penny smiled, patting Leonard's leg. "I'm gonna take a shower. Wanna come with?"

Leonard chuckled. "Really? You wanna do that at your parents house?"

"Relax, you know it's an en-suite and I need some stress relief. We've done this here before!"

"Not in the shower. And that's called using me." Leonard smirked.

Penny wiggled her brows before leaning in to kiss him. "Do I have to make you need some stress relief?" She asked quietly, sliding her hand up his thigh softly.

"Nuh-uh."

"Penny!" Bridget shrieked, running out of the car and straight at her sister, gathering her into a hug. Pulling back, she held her younger sister at the shoulders. "You okay?"

"Think you just crushed a few ribs, but other than that, yes, I'm fine." Penny nodded.

"And Leonard, so good to see you again too." Bridget hugged a baffled Leonard equally as tight. She was about to ask how he was when Meryl and Wyatt emerged from the house to greet their eldest daughter.

Penny stepped to the side slightly to edge closer to Leonard while Bridget's boyfriend, whom she didn't recognize, stepped out of the drivers side of the car. "That is not Andrew." Penny muttered to him from the corner of the mouth. "That girl moves on real fast."

Overhearing this, Bridget shot Penny a glare before shuffling down the drive to her boyfriend, leading him up to where her family were. "Guys, this is Josh. Josh, this is my Mom, Dad, my sister Penny and her boyfriend Leonard."

They each shook his hand in turn and said hello, before standing awkwardly for a few seconds. Then, Meryl suggested "why don't we go inside where its warmer, no use standing out here in the cold!"

Wyatt and Leonard went to get the suitcases from the car. Penny walked in beside her sister, needing more answers. "So, seriously, that was fast. I'm sure your Facebook still said you were with Andrew like, two weeks ago."

"Oh, that ended like two months ago... I just didn't want to change it so soon. You know it goes on your timeline now when you break up with someone?" Bridget rolled her eyes. "As if I need that on there."

"So what happened?" Penny asked, kicking off the shoes she had slipped on to go outside.

"Well, Andrew cheated on me with two different people in one night... so that was over."

"Surely that's a man after your own heart." Penny joked, but her expression changed when she saw her sister was not amused. "Sorry, sorry!"

The guys came back in with the suitcases, Wyatt first and Leonard last, shutting the door behind them. Bridget and Penny stood back to let them through and put the bags down. Meryl appeared back in the hallway with a ladle in her hand. "Bridge, I've made your bed and cleaned the bathroom and all, so you guys can go put your stuff away - just simmering the soup to keep it hot so let me know when you're back down."

With the three men having been sent out to the supermarket, Leonard and Josh eager to accompany Wyatt to stay on his good side, Meryl had begun the process of washing up, swatting her daughters offers away. Bridget located her younger sister in the front room, grateful for this early opportunity to get to talk to her on her own. "Hey, Little Slugger."

Penny giggled. "Hey Big Slugger."

Sitting down beside Penny, Bridget laughed. "Why is it that we have the most horrific nicknames but we still use them by choice?"

"I have no idea." Penny shrugged with a fond smile, which quickly faded as her sister opened her mouth to speak. "Look, I know what you're going to ask me."

Bridget bit her lip, looking over at Penny sympathetically. "I just wanna know you're okay. When Mom told me it was a huge shock. And I knew you'd want some space so everyone wasn't crowding you all at once to make sure you were fine - but I just want to make sure that you are doing okay."

Sighing, Penny folded her legs beneath her. "I spent two years depressed and alone, and then Leonard came back into the picture and I was finally happy and felt like myself again. Then I find out I'm pregnant, and it's like... this wonderful, amazing thing that I didn't expect but was just so excited about. And then on the day I'm planning to tell Leonard that I'm pregnant and get to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time... no heartbeat." Frowning, Penny looked at her sister. "Considering all of that, I think I'm doing okay."

"That's a lot for one person to take."

"It is. But... I went back to work, and I'm still doing well at college, and I'm happy and Leonard is amazing so... I can take it. I feel like I've recovered as much as I can, given all that."

"You seem quite... I dunno; quiet, around Mom and Dad. Leonard too."

"Bridge, they're literally walking on egg shells around me." Penny groaned. "I hate it! And I've told them, I told them I don't want them to act different around me. You know how Mom is usually making jokes, and Dad is always asking 'so how're the grandkids coming along?' or just... you know, being normal - they're acting like there are 'safe topics' and everything else is just going to upset us. But it's not like that, I mean, I don't know if we'd take those things as well as usual, especially since they made Leonard uncomfortable before anyway, but I would prefer it to how they are now."

Seeing how frustrated her sister was, Bridget reached over to pat Penny's arm sympathetically. "You want me to talk to them?"

"I don't know." Penny threw her head back. "Yeah, yes, I do. I can't take them picking and choosing topics. Yesterday they changed the channel on the television because there was a woman talking about her pregnancy - I mean, come on!"

"I'll talk to them, I'll talk to them." Bridget assured her sister.

"Like, okay, I still get a little upset about these things. But it's not like, taboo. Ugh, God. Like I need to be stressed about this stuff on Christmas vacation."

Bridget frowned, before sitting up slightly and putting on the best impression of their fathers voice. "So, how're those grandkids coming along, Slugger?"

Glaring briefly at her sister, Penny slouched after a few seconds. "I never knew how much I wanted to have a baby until I lost it. These bad things that happen, they teach you a lot. And I know... I don't want one now. When I was speaking to my therapist after it happened, she helped me work out that it wasn't the best time for a baby - and it's true. It's not. God could have told me that in nicer ways, but it's true. And... Leonard and I have never spoken about it before. I guess we both had the idea in our mind, since we got that apartment with spare bedrooms. We just never actually discussed having a child. And when the miscarriage happened, we both agreed that that wasn't the best time to have that discussion, and now we're just continuing on with our lives as they were before."

"Have you spoken to Leonard about it since?"

"Not really." Penny admitted.

"How is he dealing with it all? This must have been really tough for him."

"It was... it was horrible for him. You know he struggled to work in his office at home for a while because he kept thinking about how it could have been the baby's room? It was heartbreaking. But he... he's amazing. Leonard will never understand or realize it but he's so much stronger than I ever could be."

"The fact that you both had each other must have been a real blessing."

"Yes, it was." Penny nodded slowly, her mind flashing back to how he had managed to unfurl her fists from their harming position and even taken on the pain instead in the hospital. She had sometimes wondered how far she would have gone had she been alone in this situation, and she shuddered at the thought, flattening her palms instinctively. "He is a blessing."

Bridget smiled. "I'll talk to Mom, and she can talk to Dad. But I think maybe you should talk to Leonard - even if it is just checking what page he's on."

"Funny, we were saying about that a few days ago - being on the same page. You're right, though. Maybe I'll have to do what you did and ask the grandchildren question in Daddy's voice." Penny giggled, before shuffling over to hug her sister. "God, I needed this so much."