29 - The Thai Night Redux
Nora headed back to the hotel after she finished her shift and knocked on the door to Penny and Sheldon's suite. Sheldon opened the door. His clothes were soaking wet and he looked upset.
"Sheldon, what's wrong?"
"Nora, please come with me."
As Sheldon led Nora to the bedroom she saw what must have been dinner all over the floor of the kitchen. As they neared the bedroom all she could hear was sobbing, loud sobbing that could have only been coming from Penny. She was under the blankets in a fetal position crying and sobbing loudly.
"Sheldon, what happened?"
"I really don't know. I arrived home to find tonight's dinner in the condition you saw and then heard the shower. I called to Penny but upon receiving no answer proceeded to the bathroom assuming Penny hadn't heard me. I found her sitting in the shower, fully clothed, crying and sobbing much as you see her now. I turned off the shower and got her out, removed her wet clothing, dried her off and put her to bed. That was when you knocked. Have you spoken with Penny today?"
"I did. She told me she received an email confirming an audition that turned out to be for pornography. But she handled it perfectly. She was fine and I was going to update you guys over dinner."
"I haven't spoken with her since this morning but have no reason to believe anything additional happened."
Penny seemed to quiet a bit.
"Hi guys," she said hoarsely.
"Penny, what's wrong? What has happened to put you in such a state?"
"I dunno. When I was leaving the studio I just felt a bit off. I picked up dinner and came here and right after I closed the door I… I just…"
"Penny, you don't have to push yourself. Take your time. If you want some alone time…"
Penny attempted to answer through the tears.
"No, I want to… figure this out. I want to know why. Maybe it's…well, maybe it's that I figured out that… Hernly won."
"Penny, that is absolutely untrue. He has tried mightily to make you do things you do not wish to do but you have defeated him at every turn and will continue to."
"That's… not it, Sheldon. He set out… to destroy my life. And he… did."
"I don't have a home. My job doesn't exist. I've lost two of my closest friends."
"But, Penny, you have a new job. You will soon have a new home with me. And eventually your friends will hopefully return to you. All will be as it was."
"No.. it won't, Sheldon, it'll never… be the same."
"I fail to understand, Penny. In every way, despite Hernly's efforts, your life has not only continued, it has improved. You have a better, more appropriate means of employment. Our new home will in every way be better than your former abode. And you have me and I am devoted to your continued happiness."
"Sheldon, you just don't… get it."
"Nora, do you understand?"
"I'm not sure, Sheldon, but I think maybe I have an idea."
"Please explain, then."
"Can I have a few minutes alone with Penny?"
"Of course. I require dry clothing. Please take your time while I change and mop up the bathroom."
Sheldon grabbed some clothing from the closet and left, closing the bedroom door behind him.
"Penny, it's entirely possible that this is just everything that's happening catching up with you, forcing you to process it. But I have a feeling it might be more. Okay if I ask you a few questions to see if I'm right about something?"
"Okay."
"How long have you been living on your own?"
"Eight years."
"And before that?"
"I lived with this guy Kurt that I moved here from Nebraska with for four years."
"And before that?"
"With my parents on a farm outside Omaha?"
"Were you happy living by yourself?"
"Yeah. I mean things were always tight financially but I knew that was only temporary until I got famous."
"Why did you leave home?"
"I didn't want to be like all my friends back home and get married and start having kids. I didn't want to be trapped. I wanted a better life. I wanted to act."
"Why did you leave Kurt?"
"He cheated on me. He betrayed me. And he never believed in me."
"Did you date guys after Kurt?"
"Yeah. A bunch. But never anything really serious. Lots of one-night-stands. You get that, right Nora?"
"Sure. But what happened with Leonard?"
"I got tired of dating the same kind of guys. The ones that were great fucks but couldn't put together a real sentence. And Leonard had a little crush on me so I figured, why not?"
"And what happened there?"
"He kept pushing to take the next step, to move the relationship forward faster than I wanted to. First he said "I love you" before I was ready to and we broke up over that. Then we were thinking about getting back together and he went and proposed the first time we slept together again. And then he seemed to calm down for a while but after that he started pushing again and I couldn't handle it so I broke up with him again. He already had us married and with kids and me in the PTA and I wasn't ready."
"And what about Sheldon?"
"Well, I met Sheldon and Leonard at the same time the day I moved in. I was kind of attracted to him but he didn't seem to be into it at all. Then I heard Leonard call "dibs" on me. I mean, who does that?"
"Boys do that, honey. You know that."
"Yeah."
"Anyway, it started slow. For a while I thought Sheldon hated me. But after Leonard and I split up the first time Sheldon was the only one that was there for me. And, well, over time he kind of became my best friend. And last year, while I was going through some stuff with my father and dealing with all this pressure from Leonard and then all the stuff Hernly did the first time around, Sheldon was there for me whenever I needed him. He was the one who organized the whole plan to take Hernly down. He helped me negotiate my deal with the studio. And he never made me do anything I didn't want to do, even if he disagreed with me. He was, he is the best friend I've ever had. And when the Hernly thing was over, at least when I thought it was over, I realized that I loved him and wanted to be with him and nobody else. But he was with Amy. Amy figured out what was going on between us, I mean we hadn't even done anything or said anything to each other. She just saw it, ended their relationship and gave us her blessing. At least she said she did. Anyway when that happened Sheldon came to me and poured his heart out. He said he fell in love with me the moment he met me but because of Leonard and because he was devoted to his sciencey life he didn't do anything. And we've been together since that day. I just love him so much."
"So what's going on now?"
"It's all moving too quickly and I wanna yell "Stop" and I can't. It's all out of my control and it's all changing and I want it to go back to where it was last week and it can't and I hate that. We were in a really good place and then Hernly destroyed my life and I can't get it back. And I'm afraid I'm going to hurt Sheldon."
And Penny was sobbing again. Nora put her arm around her and held her.
"Penny, I think I understand. Can I call Sheldon back in so I can try and explain what I think is going on?"
"Sure."
Nora went to the bedroom door and called Sheldon back in.
"Guys, I'm only guessing here. First I'm going to repeat what I said the other day and recommend that you get some therapy, Penny. You've got a lot going on in your head and some of it conflicts, which makes things like what's happening now happen. Anyway, here's my two cents. Listen or not, it's up to you. I am by no means a relationship expert but I have seen a lot of stuff. So here goes."
"Penny, you're kind of a rebel. As far as I can tell, you always have been. You don't like doing what's expected. And you really hate when people try to plan your life for you. You rebelled against the life in Nebraska everybody expected you to have and came to California. You rebelled against Kurt when he showed you he didn't believe in you."
"I never understood how you stayed with Kurt for four years."
"Sheldon, you went one kind of university. Penny went to another."
"Penny went to community college. And dropped out."
"It's an analogy, Sheldon" Nora and Penny said at the same time.
"Oh."
"Anyway. Penny rebelled against relationships by not only living by herself but by only dating men she wouldn't have to commit to."
"Over thirty of them."
"Sheldon, are you trying to make things worse?"
"No, I apologize Penny. I was being flippant. I won't do it again."
"Thank you, sweetie."
"She rebelled against her relationship with Leonard because he wanted it to move faster and further than she was ready for. Twice."
"And in between her relationships with Leonard she pretty much stayed alone, rejecting romantic relationships entirely."
"Nora, all of that makes eminent sense and, to be truthful, is information I was aware of. What is going on with Penny now?"
"Sheldon, in you Penny seems to have found the perfect partner, someone who is as skittish about all of this as she is but who loves her as much as she loves you. You guys were figuring this all out, step by step, and it was working. You both are much more comfortable taking this slowly. You won't pressure her and she is really sensitive to pressuring you to do anything you're not comfortable with. There was a real comfort there. You weren't going any further down the line than she was. It was an ongoing negotiation, sometimes verbal, sometimes silent, and sometimes physical. Am I right?"
"That sounds as though it is correct."
"And then last week everything blew up. Now Penny won't be living on her own. She'll be living with you. And it isn't really her decision to do that. She was forced into it."
"But we discussed it. It makes the most sense for us both."
Penny chimed in.
"Sheldon, yes, it makes sense. And I want to do it. I don't want to be with anyone but you. But I thought, I think we both thought, that we wouldn't make this decision until we were both ready. I think we'd both agree that we aren't exactly ready yet but we don't have another option. Sweetie, I know how much your homeostasis means to you. And I know how much you've adjusted to fit me into your life and I love you for that. Well, I have my own homeostasis and Hernly torpedoed it. You are the only part of my life I have left. And, to be honest, I can't believe you aren't more freaked out than I am. After all, he torpedoed your life too."
"Penny, I have an advantage over you in that regard. Much of what I do, my job as it were, takes place in my head. Hernly could not take that from me unless he were to kill me. In addition, you have made a valiant effort to keep to my schedule, which comforts me, even as I am temporarily exiled from my home. And, you need me during this time and it is critical to me that I be here for you. For me to fail in this regard would undermine all that we are. I simply will not allow myself to freak out. As you no doubt have noticed, I have kept myself very busy. I have not allowed myself to slow down. It is quite likely that once Hernly is apprehended and we have embarked upon our new living paradigm that what just happened to you will happen to me and you may be required to sing "Soft Kitty" to me non-stop for days. But until that time comes I will be here for you and I will protect you."
"Penny, if you don't hug this guy right now I will."
Despite the fact that she had nothing on, Penny jumped out of the bed and threw her arms around Sheldon.
"Penelope! Some decorum, please. We have a guest."
"Hey, don't stop on my account. I'll just go out to the living room."
"Nora, stay, please." Penny said as she released Sheldon and got back into bed and crawled under the covers.
"Listen, I think you guys are going to be okay. A lot has happened. It isn't over yet. But you guys love each other and want it to work out. You're being forced to move faster in your relationship than either of you are comfortable with. It might even make sense for you to see a couple's therapist. You have a good, solid foundation but even that would take a pounding from what's been happening. Trust me I've seen a lot worse from people who thought they were in a lot better situation."
"Is there anything you'd suggest, besides therapy, which we will both give serious consideration to?"
"Well, I know this runs counter to what you'd expect, but I suggest you embrace the chaos. Instead of trying to make your stay in this incredible suite as much like being home as possible, try treating it like a vacation. I know you both have jobs to go to but, when you're here, live it up. Stay in bed for a weekend. Use room service. Just be with each other. Don't let me or your other friends in for a few days. Concentrate on making what you have even stronger so you can better withstand the changes that are coming. And if what happened today happens again, to either of you, just hold each other until it passes. It will. I promise."
"Nora, I suspect that if we a able to find a therapist half as good as you all will be well."
"Like I said, I've seen a lot, but I'd rather not be your therapist. I'd much rather be your friend."
"You are already our friend, and a very good one. Thank you."
"So are you guys hungry or do you just want to hold each other for a while."
"Actually, both," said Penny, the tears finally drying up.
"I think we'll need to find something other than the Thai food."
"Yeah, sorry about that."
"I propose that we, as Nora put it, "embrace the chaos" and order from room service. I quite enjoyed their barbeque bacon cheeseburger the other night."
"Way to think outside the box yet get right up alongside it, sweetie. But yeah, let's do that. And Nora, you will be joining us."
"Good, because I do have some stuff to tell you."
