Saturday morning dawned clear and bright; it was two weeks before Christmas and moving day for Sheldon Lee Cooper and Amy Farrah Fowler. It had been a frantic week, with the flooring being worked on and Amy travelling to and from their apartments carting over trunkful's of belongings two or three times a day. Luckily neither of them had too much furniture to be moved over, the few items they had between them fitted into the one small delivery van that Amy had ordered for the Saturday morning. They had loaded her waterbed, desk and bookcases in from Glendale and then headed over to Pasadena to collect Sheldon's dresser, desk and apothecary chest.
Amy was now following the truck over to Cooperville, Leonard was driving his car which was packed to the roof with Sheldon's clothes and collectibles with Penny driving over with Amy's car containing kitchen equipment and her bedding. Everything else had been taken over the previous day and left in the guest rooms for unpacking later. Howard and Bernadette had arranged to meet everyone at the house, having gone over early to give everything a quick clean up. During the week, Sheldon had finished carrying out the inventory of the other barns; the smaller barn had contained old farming equipment that was slated for disposal as soon as possible. The second barn held a lovely set of antique nursery equipment that had sent Amy into raptures of delight; her plans were to arrange for them to be moved up to the house to be stored in the attic until it was needed. Sheldon had also roped Leonard and Howard in to carrying the large bed frame up to the master bedroom and fitting it together, ready for the new mattress that was due to be delivered on Saturday afternoon.
"I've got Mike and Stuart moving up the chest of drawers into the master, they've already moved the other bedframes into the guest rooms." Howard leant into the open window of the cab as Amy pulled to a stop near the porch. "It might take a few of us to move the wardrobes up from the large barn."
"Okay, let me make sure the movers now where to put everything and I'll gather the troops." Amy slid out of the cab and gathered up her detailed lists, Sheldon got out of Leonard's car and headed over to join her.
"Everything okay?" He asked as he dropped a brief kiss to Amy's cheek.
"Yeah, I was just telling Amy that we still need to get the wardrobes up from the lower barn. They're heavy beasts so it will take nearly everyone to shift them up the stairs."
"I wonder whether the movers would be willing to give us a hand?" Sheldon mused as he looked at the heavyset men that were opening up the back of the moving van. "Perhaps we could offer them a crate of beer in return?"
"I'm sure they'd agree if we got Penny to ask them." Howard suggested with a smirk and Sheldon looked a little confused while Amy just nodded in agreement.
"She does have a certain appeal that they might find attractive. Hey, bestie; can we borrow you for a second?" Amy turned to call over to her best friend, who jogged over with a brilliant smile.
"What's up, sweetie? Did you forget something?"
"No, no…we were wondering whether you could use your feminine wiles to persuade the movers to help us move a couple of those wardrobes up from the lower barn." Amy asked and Penny looked over at the movers and gave everyone a grin.
"That I can do." She shrugged out of her zip up sweater and pulled the grips out of her hair, fluffing up the spiky ends with her fingers. Amy, Howard and Sheldon watched as she sauntered over to the movers, leaning against the tailgate as she smiled cheerfully at the two men, twisting a strand of hair around her fingers as she laughed at something one of the men said. Penny glanced over her shoulder and gave Amy a discrete thumbs up and a wide grin.
"Okay, she's managed to twist them around her finger so let's leave her to it while we unload the rest of these things." Sheldon clapped his hands to bring Howard into focus. "Come on, let's move it people!"
Five long hours later, everyone was slumped over various pieces of furniture as they waited for dinner to arrive. The beds were all in place, Bernadette and Penny making them up as soon as the last of the mattresses arrived. The wardrobes were in the appropriate rooms, and all it cost was a kiss on the cheek and a signed autograph from Penny; by pure chance, both men had seen Penny's 'Serial Apeist' movie and recognised her from her starring role. Raj and Emily had arrived around lunchtime and both had helped carry the oak dining table and chairs up from the barn and then gave everything a thorough clean.
Mike and Stuart had declined to join everyone else for dinner; Mike was making the most of his wife's absence and had arranged for an all-night poker game with some of his old buddies from the force. Stuart had caught a lift back to Debbie's with Mike, with the older man agreeing to join everyone for Sunday lunch to be cooked by Sheldon the next day.
"Pizza's here!" Howard saw the lights of the delivery car sweeping up the drive and ran for the door. Sheldon flung his wallet over and Howard plucked it out of the air as he headed outside.
"Shall we be grown-ups and eat at the table?" suggested Bernadette, and everyone groaned as they complained about how they were too tired to move.
"Let's be grown-up tomorrow." Penny called out from where she was sitting in one of the rockers, her legs dangling over the side. "Just grab some napkins out of the box and be done with it."
"Please be careful on the sofa and armchair, I don't want them ruined by smeared pizza sauce." Sheldon looked up from where he was sitting on the far end of one of the long sofas.
"Sheldon, they're leather so it will just wipe off." Amy leant over to pat his leg and he gave her a little shrug of apology.
"Sorry, I guess I just want everything to remain as perfect as it is right now."
"Don't worry, it will be." Amy reassured him, and he finally relaxed leaning against her shoulder with a small sigh as she ran her fingers through his short hair.
"I know that you guys said that you didn't want us to make a fuss…but, here we couldn't let the occasion go unmarked." Bernadette leant down to pluck something out of her bag. She passed two bottles over to Amy. "One bottle of champagne for those of us so inclined, and a bottle of non-alcoholic bubbly for anyone else that wants it."
"Ooh, I'll grab the glasses from the kitchen, I unpacked them earlier and gave them a rinse." Emily ran into the kitchen and returned a few minutes later with a tray filled with clean glasses.
"Non-alcoholic for me, please Bernie." Amy selected a glass from the tray and held it up to be filled.
"Me too, champagne gives me a headache." Leonard also selected the non-alcoholic option as did Sheldon; everyone else plumping for the real deal. Howard came in with the stacked boxes of pizza and Raj passed around paper plates along with handfuls of napkins.
"To Amy and Sheldon, here's wishing you both a long and happy life together." Leonard raised his glass to the happy couple and everyone followed suit. "Amy and Sheldon."
"Amy and Sheldon." Echoes of his toast rang throughout the room and Sheldon tapped his glass to the edge of Amy's and then leant over to press a soft kiss against her lips.
"Thank you for saying yes." He murmured against her lips as they continued to kiss.
"Thank you for asking me." Amy answered, reaching up to gently caress his smooth cheek, feeling him smile against her hand.
"Aw…" Raj cooed from where he and Emily were snuggled in the armchair. "That's so beautiful that I think I'm going to cry."
"And on that note, I think I'll get him home to bed." Emily rose up from the armchair and tugged Raj to his feet, to the protests of Amy and Penny.
"Oh, but don't you want to stay over with the rest of us? There are two guest rooms made up ready."
"Thanks but I've got clinic tomorrow morning and I don't want to have to rush back to town during the morning rush." Emily smiled sweetly to soften her refusal, and then looked over to Raj. "You can stay if you like, Raj; I'm going to be heading out early so we won't see much of tomorrow anyway."
"No, my sweet; let's go back to my place and make the most of the time that we have together." Raj waggled his eyebrows suggestively and Emily giggled as she tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow.
"Good night everyone, thank you again for dinner."
"No, thank you for coming over on your only day off to give us a hand." Amy walked over to kiss Emily's cheek and the two women hugged briefly before Amy kissed Raj's cheek in farewell before walking them both to the door. She waved them off, and when she came back in she paused in the doorway. "I take it the rest of you are staying tonight?" Penny had moved over to sit on the sofa next to Bernadette and the two women were giggling together as they swigged champagne directly from the bottle. Howard had taken over Penny's abandoned rocking chair and was gently rocking as he chatted to Leonard by the fire.
"If that's okay with you guys?" Howard stopped rocking to look between Sheldon and Amy. "Of course it is, the four of you have put just as much effort into this place as I have and it wouldn't feel right if you weren't here to share it with us." Amy rubbed her hand across Howard's shoulder and then reached over to clasp Leonard's hand. Sheldon smiled softly from his spot on the sofa and patted the seat next to him in invitation.
"Come on, darlin'…let's just sit and enjoy the fire for a little while before we all head up to bed, it's been a long day and we're all exhausted."
"Mmm…good idea." Amy murmured as she curled her feet up under her and nestled against Sheldon's side; their sofa perfectly situated so that they could see out of the large picture window and the fire at the same time. The three couples sat quietly for another hour, Penny and Bernadette having finished the champagne and snoozing on the sofa with the other four chatting quietly. Sheldon got up to bank the fire and set the guard in place, and then glanced around the darkened room.
"Shall we?" The six of them trooped out into the hallway, Howard and Bernadette taking the guest room on the ground floor with Penny and Leonard following Sheldon up to the first floor. "Your room is a little basic as it's only got the bed and a small cabinet at the moment; you know where the bathroom is and there's a selection of bath items under the counter for the morning." Sheldon pointed everything out and Leonard pushed him toward the second staircase.
"I know, buddy…I helped paint it, remember? You two head up to bed and don't worry about the rest of us."
"Okay, good night." Sheldon smiled faintly at Leonard as he turned to head up the stairs, pausing for Amy to catch up.
"Night, bestie!" Amy called out through the open doorway, grinning at Leonard and waving goodnight.
"Good night, Amy…sweet dreams." Penny called out from inside the bedroom, already testing the new mattress for softness. Leonard stepped inside and closed the door behind him, tipping his head to one side as he thought about something Sheldon had said a few days ago. "What are you thinking about, sweetie?" Penny said as she knelt on the mattress.
"Sheldon said that he and Amy were waiting until they moved in properly before doing more than merely sleeping together…I just wondered whether he meant tonight, cause wouldn't that be a little awkward with the rest of us in the house?"
"I think he meant more along the lines of when everything was finished in the house and they were more relaxed. Settle down, sweetie – I don't think you have to worry about overhearing their wild escapades tonight; and don't get any ideas yourself either."
"I wasn't!" Leonard protested, "That would be a little rude, this is a brand new mattress after all."
"Yeah, when we come and stay at Christmas we'll bring our own sheets." Penny ran her hand over the quilt spread over the antique bed. "I hate the idea of spoiling this, it's so beautiful."
"Yeah, this is the one that Amy was telling us about last week, it's a Wedding Ring quilt that one of her father's great-great grandmother's made during the early settlement years." Leonard slipped out of his clothes and placed them neatly on top of the cabinet, sliding under the sheet wearing his undershirt and boxer shorts. Penny did the same, choosing to sleep in her silk camisole and panties. They cuddled up under the quilt and soon drifted off into peaceful slumber.
Meanwhile, up in the master suite, Sheldon and Amy were also preparing for bed. Their practise runs over the past week had them both learning each other's routines down pat. Sheldon would brush his teeth and use the bathroom first whilst Amy got undressed, then they would change over. They continued to share one pair of pyjamas between the two of them; Sheldon had taken to wearing a long sleeved thermal shirt over the top rather than an undershirt. He was waiting under the covers when Amy flicked off the light in the bathroom and she dashed across the room to dive under the covers, shivering a little with the cold.
"I knew it would be like sharing a bed with a block of ice…" Sheldon hissed when Amy's bare feet touched his ankle under the covers, and he caught her foot between his own and started rubbing it to warm it up. "Now I know why you insist on wearing all of those layers."
"We should have lit the fire up here earlier to warm it up, it's freezing in here!" Amy tucked her hands under her armpits in an attempt to warm herself up. Sheldon clucked his tongue and pulled her arms around his waist instead, hearing Amy purr with delight as his warmth started to seep through her bones.
"Mmm…you're like a living hot water bottle, lovely."
"Come on, bring your other foot over here as well." Sheldon scissored his feet across Amy's side of the bed and wrapped his legs around both of her feet. "I was thinking that the dressing room would make a lovely little nursery for when we bring the baby home from the hospital." He remarked casually, and Amy looked up from where she was just about to lay her head on his shoulder.
"Isn't that a little small?"
"Well, the other bedrooms are all downstairs and I wouldn't want the baby to be that far away from us at first; you know they wake up for feeds during the night and I might not be able to hear them from all the way up here." Sheldon played with Amy's fingers as he spoke, rubbing his thumb along the edge of her ring.
"I'll be the one getting up in the night to feed the baby, and we'll have a baby monitor of course." Sheldon rolled to his side at Amy's words, a look of surprise on his face.
"I wouldn't expect you to get up with every feed; I want to do my fair share. You can express some milk and I can give a couple of bottles."
"All of this is a moot point at the moment anyway, we're not pregnant and besides you know what has to happen first."
"Of course I know, but I can't do that with other people in the house…Neither of us know how loud or exuberant we are likely to be and I don't think I want anyone else to know what goes on inside our bedroom." Sheldon gave Amy a frown and she giggled.
"I wasn't suggesting that we have sex right now, Sheldon! I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were likely to be letting yourself in for…" Amy ran her finger down the side of Sheldon's face and pressed a quick kiss to his surprised mouth.
"I think I know exactly what I'm letting myself in for, and I can't wait!" Sheldon hugged Amy close and dropped a warm kiss to her upturned mouth, smacking her lightly on the bottom when he pulled away. "Now, we'd better stop all of this hanky panky before we forget that we have overnight guests…"
"Just one more?" Amy asked, puckering up for another kiss. Sheldon sighed and bent his head, delivering a slow, heated kiss to her mouth and tracing the outline of her bottom lip with the tip of his tongue.
"There…now, please go to sleep!"
"Tease." Amy muttered a little disgruntled that Sheldon hadn't continued with his soft assault. She flipped over to her side, presenting Sheldon with her back and he immediately rolled over to curve himself around her. Amy grinned to herself as she felt the press of Sheldon's body against her buttocks, giving an experimental nudge backwards.
"Now who's being the tease?" Sheldon muttered against her neck, as he tried to shift out of the way.
"No, come back." Amy reached out to pull Sheldon back to rest against her. "I like feeling you that way, we don't have to do anything but it feels nice knowing that I can affect you like that."
"Just lay still then." Sheldon conceded, snuggling against Amy's now warm back and fitting his lean frame against her soft curves. "Now, go to sleep and I'll hold you like this all night."
"Promise?" Amy twisted her head around to peer backwards at Sheldon. He dropped a kiss to the tip of her nose, and nodded.
"Promise." Amy turned her head into the pillow and Sheldon rested his chin on top of her crown, breathing in the sweet scent of her shampoo. "Just sleep now." His arms crept around her waist, and Amy's hands came down to rest on his forearms, slipping under the sleeve of his shirt to slide around to wrap around his wrist. Sheldon felt his body relax as they both drifted off into peaceful slumber.
In the early hours of the morning, Sheldon woke up feeling incredibly hot and slightly uncomfortable. He glanced down to see that Amy had rolled over in the night and was sprawled across his chest with her arms and legs wrapped tightly around him. He debated whether he should wake her or simply try to move her back over to her own side and while he was thinking about it, he slipped back into sleep.
The next time he woke it was to find that they had both rolled back to their original positions, but with one notable difference – Amy's borrowed pyjama top had come lose in the night and Sheldon's hand had curved around her firm breast and he was now cradling it in his palm. "Oh My!" Sheldon murmured to himself as he felt her nipple pebble against his palm and Amy unconsciously rubbed her buttocks against his pelvis.
"Mmm…Sheldon…" Amy murmured in her sleep, and Sheldon peered around to see a softly satisfied smile creep across her face. He withdrew his hand slowly and slid out of bed, gently tucking the covers around Amy as he crept towards the shower. A few minutes later, Sheldon ran down the stairs and started rummaging through the cupboards in search of something to prepare for breakfast, deciding on French toast. He had just started to whisk the eggs in a bowl when a small pair of hands slid around his waist to hug him tightly.
"Amy, I was planning on surprising you with breakfast in bed." Sheldon dropped the whisk into the bowl and placed his hands over the pair on his waist, turning around to press a soft kiss against her forehead.
"Well, someone woke me up when they snuck out of bed and I got cold."
"Hmm, well I woke up in a…" Sheldon paused, searching for the right words, "Difficult position and I thought it best to leave."
"What kind of difficult position?" Amy asked, leaning back in Sheldon's embrace, "Come on you can tell me anything." Sheldon flushed as he bent down to whisper in her ear, and soon Amy's cheeks were beet red to match his own. "Oh my! Yes, well…I see…"
"I didn't know what to do…it was completely unconscious, I assure you."
"Calm down, sweetheart." Amy cupped Sheldon's cheek in her hand and kissed him gently. "I believe you, perhaps it was just your body letting you know unconsciously that it was okay to touch me now."
"Perhaps, but I still feel as though I were mauling you in your sleep!"
"Next time wake me up, and I'll let you know if I mind your type of 'mauling'." Amy winked and grinned, and Sheldon sighed heavily as he cuddled her closer.
"Vixen." He breathed against her hair, "Why did we decide it would be a good idea to host a Sunday dinner party today of all days? We should be snuggled up in bed celebrating our newly formed union and instead we're hiding away in our new kitchen when everyone else is still asleep."
"It's just for today, in eight or nine hours everyone will be gone and we'll be alone again." Amy stroked Sheldon's face gently and he closed his eyes at her soothing touch. "Let's forget about everyone else for a bit and go and snuggle on the couch, we can look at some fabric samples and decide what we'd like in the way of draperies."
"Can't we look at paint for the nursery instead?" Sheldon murmured with a soft melting smile on his face and Amy patted his arm.
"And there was me thinking that the thought of children would send you running for the hills."
"Strange as it may seem, I find the thought of you bearing my child very comforting. I didn't think I would ever be in a position to be able to say this, but I find myself eagerly anticipating the time that we bring our baby into this world."
"Sheldon, that's beautiful!" Penny's choked voice coming from the kitchen door had Sheldon looking behind him. Penny wiped her eyes as she walked over to take a seat at the table. "I'm so proud of you, sweetie. When I think about how far you've come in the past eight years, well, it's like you are a completely different person."
"I think we can both thank Amy for that change." Sheldon stated quietly, slipping onto a chair at the table and tugging Amy down to perch on his lap.
"I mean, just look at the two of you." Penny waved over to the pair cuddling in front of her. "I could never have envisaged you being engaged, let alone snuggling up with Amy on your lap in your first house together…Oh, what did your Mother's have to say when you told her you were moving in together?"
"I told Meemaw and let her to be the one to break the news to Mama…Meemaw loves Amy almost as much as I do so she said she was only too pleased to tell the rest of the family. We're flying out to see them all after Christmas for a short while." Sheldon frowned slightly when Penny started clucking under her breath and flapping her arms up and down. "I am not a chicken, I just couldn't stand to hear Mama's lecture about fornicating and sinnin' one more time."
"What about you, Ames? What did your Mother have to say about all of this?"
"Nothing really…she mentioned something about how she hoped that I hadn't wasted my money on a foolish dream and that she was a little disappointed that I hadn't bought something closer to her. I haven't mentioned my engagement to Sheldon as yet; like Sheldon I would rather not have to be subjected to another lecture on how I've wasted my life and that I should have taken up the offer to move to Norway."
"You were offered a job in Norway?" Penny slapped the table in shock.
"Yeah, twenty years ago and she's never stopped bringing up the fact that after I turned it down the team went on to be nominated for a Nobel Prize."
"You'll get one eventually, darlin'." Sheldon squeezed Amy's hand and she nuzzled her head under his chin.
"I know, I'm not that worried about it to be honest. I love the work that I'm doing at the moment and maybe one day I will have something even better to focus on."
"I don't want you sacrificing your career when we have children, I can easily work from home until they are old enough to start school…I meant it when I said that I didn't expect you to do all of the work." Sheldon said with another of his special smiles and Penny felt her heart melt at the sight.
"Aww…a little Shamy baby! How many are you planning on having anyway?"
"I'd like as many as Amy wishes…I don't mind what sex but must admit that I'd love a little girl that looks just like her Mother…or a little boy that has a fondness for trains. I did warn Amy that twins run in my family so we may just be blessed with two on our first try."
"How about you, Ames? Any thoughts on how many little Sheldon's you can put up with?" Penny glanced over to Amy and saw the soft expression in her friend's eye as she thought about her future children.
"I'm an only child as you know, and Sheldon is one of three…I hated not having anyone to play with, I had no cousins as both of my parents were also the sole children of their family so I'd like at least two to start off with. We'd have to negotiate for more, depending on how long it takes for us to get pregnant to begin with; I'm in my early thirties now and I'm worried about possible difficulties if we leave it too long."
"What about the wedding, any thoughts on how soon you'll be getting married?" Penny asked as she passed the time waiting for Leonard to come downstairs; she was interested in their plans but didn't think she could sit through much more of the billing and cooing taking place across the table. It was still very strange for her to see the previously uptight Sheldon being so openly affectionate with his fiancé.
"I'd just like to enjoy being engaged for a while first, it's something that I never imagined would ever happen and I'd like to wallow for a little bit before we make any definite plans."
"Good, good…no sense in rushing into these things…Ah, here's Leonard! Sweetie, are you ready to head back to town so that we can get changed?" Penny lept up from the table and grabbed hold of Leonard's arm as soon as he walked into the kitchen. Get me out of here! She muttered under her breath, Sheldon's talking about babies and keeps giving Amy his koala smile and it's freaking me out!
"Ah…sure." Leonard gave Sheldon a pained smile as he let himself get dragged away. "We'll see you about two thirty then? Is there anything we can bring? Dessert or wine maybe?"
"No thank you, Leonard, it's all in hand." Sheldon replied with a smile, Amy slipped off his lap to show the other couple to the door.
"Thanks for giving us a hand yesterday with the move." Amy kissed Penny on the cheek and briefly gave Leonard a hug. "You've been really great."
"It was a pleasure, Amy. I mean it, you just let me know if there's anything else I can do around here and I'll be over in a flash. I've still got a couple of weeks until I have to be back at the University and I know that you'd like to get the rest of the bedrooms finished before Christmas…plus there's all of the decorating to do; I saw your plans remember?"
"I haven't discussed any of that with Sheldon yet, but I think he will be okay with it all. We'll talk later this evening, okay?"
"Okay, see you later." Leonard waved goodbye and clasped Penny's hand as the two of them stepped over to his car and drove back to town. Amy closed the front door just as Howard and Bernadette emerged from the downstairs guest room.
"Morning Amy, was that Leonard and Penny just leaving? They're off early aren't they?"
"Good morning, Bernie…yes, they've gone home to shower and change but will be back later this afternoon. Can I get you any breakfast?" Amy held open the door to the kitchen as Howard shook his head regretfully.
"No thanks, we've got to be heading back soon ourselves. I promised Ma that we'd stop by and have breakfast with her as we're having Sunday dinner with you guys tonight."
"Yeah, God forbid we should be allowed to skip a Sunday every once in a while." Bernie muttered to Amy out of the side of her mouth. "Thank your lucky stars that your Mother in law will be living a few thousand miles away."
"Yes, but my Mother only lives on the other side of Glendale. Luckily we don't see each other that often, so Sheldon won't be subject to lectures over endless Sunday dinners with her."
"Bernie honey, we need to get going if we're going to collect Ma in time for the early bird special." Howard called over, tapping his watch impatiently. Bernie growled low in her throat as she sent him a sickly sweet smile.
"Howie, I will leave when I'm good and ready…Heaven forbid we should have to pay the full price of $3.99 instead of $2.50!"
"But Bernie…!" Howard saw the look in his wife's eyes and wisely decided not to say anything further. "Yes, dear…I'll be in the car. Sheldon, Amy thanks for letting us crash in your guest room and we'll see you later." He shot them both a brief smile and made a quick exit, pulling out his phone to make a suitable excuse for their late arrival to his Mother. Bernie turned to Amy once he had gone and pulled her into a warm hug.
"I'm so happy for you, sweetie and I hope the two of you will be very happy in your new home." Bernie kissed Amy's cheek and gave Sheldon a wave.
"Thank you, Bernie." Amy pulled back from the hug and crossed over to wrap her arm around Sheldon's waist.
"Don't bother seeing me out, the two of you need to just relax and find your feet. See you later!" Bernie blew them both a kiss as she skipped lightly along the hallway and they heard the front door close, followed by Bernie's screech at Howard, telling him that they didn't have to stop along the way to pick up flowers for his Mother as they had absolutely nothing to apologise for. Sheldon grinned at Amy and whirled her around the kitchen floor before pulling her back into his arms and hugging her tightly.
"Well, Doctor Cooper-to-be…however should we fill the next six hours and forty five minutes?" Sheldon waggled his eyebrows at Amy and she giggled before blushing prettily.
"We could always go back upstairs and…"
"Practise for the babies…? Okay then!" Sheldon nodded enthusiastically and swooped Amy up into his arms, carrying her bridal style down the hallway and up to the first flight of stairs.
"Actually, I thought we could measure up the window for blinds and drapes; but who am I to argue with a man on a mission?" Amy pressed a kiss to Sheldon's cheek and he stopped mid-flight, setting Amy down to her feet.
"You don't want to?" Sheldon frowned slightly, unhappy with the thought that he had pressured Amy into something that she wasn't ready for.
"Of course I want to, I just wanted to make sure that you wanted it too, and didn't feel like we had to just because we're engaged now." Amy reassured him, and to prove her point grabbed Sheldon's hand and started tugging him up the rest of the stairs. "Race you!"