a/n: I don't know how many times you people have given me the strength and courage to go on with this story, even though it's overstaying its welcome big time.
Warning and disclaimer: I have no knowledge of quantum physics or theoretical physics, so the stuff I'm spouting here is complete and utter BS. Apparently I'm full of it, so just ignore it. Also, a lot of song lyrics are about to return here. Again, none of them belong to me.
Concession
Chapter 35: A Mad Serenade
Journal Entry: If I want this all to work out, I'll have to be positive. I'll have to be confident. After this weekend, I'm not sure if Sheldon will ever really take the lead as far as intimacy goes, so it's all up to me. But now that I know he's willing to go along with whatever we do together, it's time to start upping the ante.
I'm convinced that Sheldon is comfortable with kissing now, but I'm curious if he would allow me to kiss him someplace besides his lips or his cheek. I've kissed his neck a couple of times and his reactions are always hot. I wonder if he'd let me kiss his chest. Of course, I'd have to get past his pajama shirt to do that...
Hm. There's one factor that I haven't been using to my advantage. Sheldon seems more open to ideas once he's read them in my fantasies—intercourse excluded, of course. But those fantasies are so embarrassing! How am I supposed to just let him read them? Then again, he does seem interested in what I'm writing about us. He'd definitely read it if I gave it to him.
Sheldon's so weird. It's hard to know exactly where he stands on any of this. But perhaps that shouldn't be my concern. Perhaps I should just be satisfied with the fact that I get positive reactions from him when we do these things together.
Not long after she arrived at work, there was a knock on her opened lab door. There stood Sheldon. She simply looked at him and he just looked back at her.
(What is he doing here?) Amy asked herself, wondering why her boyfriend wasn't saying anything.
After a moment, Sheldon took a few steps into the lab and then pointed at his neck. The relatively new hickey she'd given him this past weekend was obvious on his pale skin. "The guys are giving me a hard time again, so..."
(Already?) Amy thought. She couldn't help noticing that Sheldon was staring down at his own feet. "So?" she asked, hoping it didn't come off sounding unsympathetic.
"...so I was hoping that I could have lunch here with you," he went on.
She wasn't going to say no. She loved spending time with him, but he was the one who suggested they not spend so much time together since they were together all weekend. Well, it was high time she started taking advantage of rare moments such as these. "Of course you can have lunch here with me, Sheldon." She went over to him and took his hand, pulling him a little closer to her.
He looked a little surprised, but he let her hold his hand.
"Is it Wolowitz?" Amy asked. "If he's making fun of you for something like this, it's not very nice. Would you like me to talk to him?"
"That's not necessary. You know the old saying, 'Boys will be boys'," her boyfriend told her. He looked at his hand in hers, then looked back at her face. "Well, those equations on my white board won't balance themselves. And I'd better let you get back to your squishy science."
She noticed that he didn't actually make a move to leave. He just stood there, still holding her hand. "Okay," she said with a small smile. "I'll see you at lunchtime."
But they simply stood there holding hands for a while.
Sheldon sat with Amy as they had lunch in her lab once again.
"As a theoretical physicist, you believe in multiple dimensions and alternate timelines and things like that, correct?" Amy asked her boyfriend.
Her boyfriend looked at her and nodded.
"So, do you believe that there may be a version of us in some other dimension along some other timeline that possesses the knowledge and memories of all the other timelines?" Amy asked.
Sheldon looked confused. "What would make you think that?"
"Well, that one episode in Season Five when Picard was unconscious for a short time, but lived another life—"
"Ah, Episode 25: The Inner Light," he said, giving a nod. "Go on."
"I was just thinking, wouldn't it be great to be the Amy that has all of those experiences and all those memories and all of that knowledge? I mean, I know that the human mind is only made to process so much information, but something like that would be pretty amazing."
"It would be pretty amazing, but it would also be impossible. The only memories available to one timeline's version of yourself would be memories along that timeline," Sheldon told her. "And even if we were to break the dimensional barrier, you wouldn't gain the knowledge of that dimension's Amy. You would simply know that she exists."
"I'm not sure I get it. Picard had memories and talents from the life he lived in another timeline," Amy said.
"And that's why they call it science fiction. Besides, it wasn't technically another timeline. It was more like his consciousness having been taken to live another life in the past. It wasn't even his own life really. Have you ever seen Quantum Leap?"
Amy furrowed her brow. "No."
"Oh...," Sheldon said. "Well, then you wouldn't really understand the comparison I was about to make... I guess it would be more like a past life experience, if you believe in that sort of thing."
Amy poked at her food. "Hm. And here I was hoping that I could find a timeline where we're already intimate and gain that Amy's knowledge and experiences just to see how she did it." She grinned.
This time Sheldon furrowed his brow. "Well, that was a very roundabout approach to bringing up that topic. Aren't you gaining that knowledge and experience as we speak?"
Amy froze and looked at Sheldon for a long time. He'd practically just told her that they were definitely going to become more intimate. How exciting! Then again, with their experimentation, how could she have any doubts?
...later that day...
Amy peeped into the engineering lab where she spotted Howard cleaning some tools and putting them away. She quietly stepped into the lab and folded her arms. "Wolowitz."
Howard was startled and nearly dropped one of the soldering irons. "Amy? What are you doing here?"
"I wanted to talk to you about something," she told him.
The engineer put away the things he was working on and gave her his full attention. "What's up?"
She cleared her throat and sighed. "Two things, actually. I want to thank you."
"Thank me?"
"Yes. You and Rajesh have been wonderful to me. Not only did you introduce me to Sheldon, but you've helped me through these hard times in our relationship. So, for that I thank you."
Howard gave a crooked, confused grin. "You're...welcome."
"But," Amy added. "I also came here to scold you. You've been giving Sheldon a hard time about his hickeys and as a result, he's hesitant to eat lunch with you guys."
"What? Listen, I apologized to him, but he's got to get over it. That was last week," Howard told her. "Sure, we brought up the new one, but we didn't give him a hard time about it."
Amy narrowed her eyes at Howard. "Sure you didn't," she said sarcastically.
"We didn't. All I said was, 'Amy gave you another one, huh?' Honest," he told her.
She thought for a moment. Was Howard telling the truth and Sheldon simply blew it out of proportion? Howard didn't really have a reason to lie to her. Or maybe Sheldon wasn't blowing it out of proportion at all. Maybe he'd told an outright lie again. Her boyfriend was making a bad habit out of lying to her lately. Had he told that falsehood simply to have lunch with her?
Sheldon wasn't a liar, but it seemed he was making up excuses to be with her.
"Did one of the other guys say anything that might have set him off?" Amy asked, still wary that Howard might be the one lying to her.
"Not really. I mean, Raj said that it was nice and Leonard already knew about it. But we immediately dropped the subject after that and started talking about Disney and Marvel team-ups," Howard said.
"Unbelievable," was all Amy could say.
"Tell me about it. But with all the cinematic success of Marvel movies lately, Disney's bound to start doing something along those lines," he went on.
Amy frowned. "That's not what I'm talking about. Thanks again, Howard. You've been a real help."
[Hi, Sheldon. Are we still having Kolinahr practice this evening?] Amy texted to her boyfriend.
[Of course. It may not be included in any contract, but Kolinahr practice has become a weekly custom. I'll see you after work,] he texted back.
Amy turned off her phone and simply held it in her hand for a moment. (But when was the last time we actually practiced Kolinahr during Kolinahr practice?) she asked herself with a smirk.
...after work...
Amy decided not to grill Sheldon about the whole hickey thing. She decided not to bring up the fact that they don't actually practice Kolinahr on Mondays anymore. What she did decide was that she would do something he wasn't expecting.
Once they arrived at her apartment and Sheldon was setting up the food, Amy went straight to her harp and started playing and singing:
—
I say I'll move the mountains
And I'll move the mountains
If he wants them out of the way
Crazy he calls me
Sure, I'm crazy
Crazy in love, I say
I say I'll go through fire
And I'll go through fire
As he wants it, so it will be
Crazy he calls me
Sure, I'm crazy
Crazy in love, you see
Like the wind that shakes the bough
He moves me with a smile
The difficult I'll do right now
The impossible will take a little while
I say I'll care forever
And I mean forever
If I have to hold up the sky
Crazy he calls me
Sure, I'm crazy
Crazy in love am I
Like the wind that shakes the bough
He moves me with a smile
The difficult I'll do right now
The impossible will take a little while
I say I'll care forever
And I mean forever
If I have to hold up the sky
Crazy he calls me
Sure, I'm crazy
Crazy in love am I
—
Sheldon seemed ecstatic to hear the song again. He'd stopped what he was doing and went to stand next to her harp, watching her fingers as she went on.
—
Living for you is easy living
It's easy to live when you're in love
And I'm so in love
There is nothing in life but you
I never regret the years that I'm giving
They're easy to give when you're in love
I'm happy to do whatever I do for you
For you maybe I'm a fool
But it's fun
People say you rule me with one wave of your hand
Darling, it's grand
They just don't understand
Living for you is easy living
It's easy to live when you're in love
And I'm so in love
There's nothing in life but you
—
I'm as corny as Kansas in August,
I'm as normal as blueberry pie.
No more a smart little girl with no heart,
I have found me a wonderful guy!
I am in a conventional dither,
With a conventional star in my eye.
And you will note there's a lump in my throat
When I speak of that wonderful guy!
I'm as trite and as gay as a daisy in May,
A cliche coming true!
I'm bromidic and bright as a moon happy night
Pouring light on the dew!
I'm as corny as Kansas in August,
High as a flag on the Fourth of July!
If you'll excuse an expression I use,
I'm in love, I'm in love,
I'm in love, I'm in love,
I'm in love with a wonderful guy
—
When an irresistible force such as you
Meets an old immovable object like me
You can bet just as sure as you live
Somethin's gotta give
Somethin's gotta give
Somethin's gotta give
When an irrepressible smile such as yours
Warms an old implacable heart such as mine
Don't say no, because I insist
Somewhere, somehow, someone's gonna get kissed
So, en garde, who knows what the fates have in store?
From their vast mysterious sky?
I'll try hard ignorin' those lips I adore
But how long can anyone try?
Fight, fight, fight, fight it with all of our might
Chances are some heavenly star-spangled night
We'll find out as sure as we live
Somethin's gotta give
Somethin's gotta give
Somethin's gotta give
Fight fight fight it with all of your might
Chances are that some heavenly star-spangled night
We'll find out just as sure as we live
Somethin's gotta give
Somethin's gotta give
Somethin's gotta give
—
"Oh, Amy. That was wonderful," Sheldon told her.
Amy sighed and fingered her harp strings absently. "I have a confession to make. Those aren't just randomly selected songs from some game that you like."
She could see Sheldon nodding out of the corner of her eye. "I know," she heard him say quietly.
Even though she'd hinted at it in the past, she didn't really think Sheldon knew what she was getting at with those songs. Did he really understand why she'd picked those songs? Or was he just saying that he knew to keep her from turning into a hippy?
"After we sang Easy Living together, I knew it wasn't random," Sheldon went on. He rolled his eyes. "Also, Raj told me that you two talked about the fact that it was practically a serenade. He was pretty upset that I didn't acknowledge it as such."
(Wow. All of our friends are blabbermouths,) Amy thought.
"He said that I was lucky to land a girlfriend like you," Sheldon continued. "But I already knew that."
Her heart thudded rapidly in her chest. He was actually complimenting her again. "Oh, Sheldon," she breathed. One of her hands stopped clutching the harp strings and reached over to take Sheldon's hand.
Her boyfriend rolled his eyes again. "Alright. Let's not get carried away."
"I'm only getting a little carried away," Amy told him in a whisper. She kept a hold of his hand, stood, clamped her free hand behind his neck and pulled him close for an innocent, but long kiss.
And there was no resistance on Sheldon's part. She could feel him relaxing into the kiss and the hand that she was holding clasped hers. Suddenly, something unexpected happened. Sheldon's free hand reached up and removed her glasses.
She wasn't sure what he was planning to do after taking off her glasses, but Amy thought about taking them back. Then she reconsidered. She wanted to see where this was going.
Without losing contact with her lips, Sheldon backpedalled over to the couch with her so they could both take a seat. Her boyfriend broke their kiss to place Amy's glasses on the coffee table and they both took a moment to breathe.
(He was the one who said not to get carried away, but it looks like he's doing just that,) Amy thought. She cleared her throat. "I can't see much without those," she murmured, referring to her glasses.
"I know," Sheldon said.
He went back to kissing her, only this time it wasn't his usual timid tongue exploration. She couldn't be sure what had gotten into him, but she liked it. His hand even found its way to her waist and with each aggressive brushing of his tongue against hers, she felt her center of desire tingle with excitement. Her toes curled and uncurled inside her orthopedic shoes as she grabbed his shirt.
Her head began to spin as Sheldon tilted his head to the other side for a new angle on their kiss. So she took the opportunity to experiment again. She gently began sucking on his tongue and once again he quickly pulled away and let her go.
Another fantastic moment between them ruined because of her over-excitement and curiosity. (I guess he really doesn't like that,) she thought.
"What was that?" Sheldon asked, just as he had the first time.
Amy quickly reached for her glasses and put them back on. "I guess I really did get carried away. Come on. Dinner's getting cold," she said, gesturing toward their Thai takeout.
Once they were done with dinner and Amy was about to stand to throw away her empty container, Sheldon stopped her by taking her hand. "Um, we can do that later. We should get started right away."
It wasn't like Sheldon to leave a mess, but she would do as she was told. (We really are practicing Kolinahr today, I suppose. And just when I thought I had all of this figured out,) she thought.
"Okay, let's close our eyes and concentrate on our breathing," Sheldon said.
Amy was obedient, but she could feel him sitting next to her. She could hear him breathing. And even with all the takeout smells lingering in the air, she could still smell his unique aroma.
"Calm your mind and your body," Sheldon uttered.
They were both quiet for a moment, but Amy's mind and body were far from calm. His presence had always ignited the flame of her desire, but today it seemed worse than usual. She tried not to think about it. She tried pretending that she was alone. Nothing worked.
"Amy?" she heard her boyfriend say quietly.
How was she supposed to concentrate like this? She kept her eyes closed and calmed her breathing as much as possible. "Yes?"
"If it's not too much of an inconvenience, could I spend the night here tonight?"
...to be continued...
a/n: Yeah, right. Like she's gonna say no. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to read this short, nonsensical chapter. It's a little scattered, but I hope you liked it anyway. Please review.
a/n: You folks brought up some great concerns and I thank you for them. They'll help me in the chapters to come. What bothered me most about the last chapter? I tend to write intimate encounters between these two in sort of an innocent way. I use more euphemisms for sex organs than I probably should and in some instances the actions may come off as vague to some readers. It's pretty sad that I didn't realize how weird it was until that chapter, but it seemed worse there than any other. I don't know. Maybe I'm as bad as Amy and Sheldon and I'm over-thinking this. I mean, I can't imagine how troublesome it must be to a reader whose first language isn't English. Any thoughts?