Sheldon stood in front of his whiteboard without really seeing it. His mind was firmly entrenched in last night. The feel of Penny's body against his, the taste of her skin, the soft moans she tried to hold back so they didn't wake the baby.
He wondered briefly if their first time had been as exquisite as their second time had been. He shook his head to try and clear away the past. Last night was the beginning of something completely new. It didn't matter what had happened ten months ago. What mattered now was the present.
Penny had said they would talk tonight about their living arrangements. She was only back to work part time for the moment, but soon enough she would need to resume her full time schedule. He had been dreading that a great deal because it would mean he saw very little of her. He had assumed that once she was back to full time, he would have to return to 4A.
Now he would be there when she came home every night. She would be there every time he woke up. Relief and joy and excitement swirled within him. For the first time in his professional life, he was eager for the workday to end.
Penny handed Carl to Bernadette and pulled her top back into place. She took the glass of juice Amy held out and smiled her thanks.
Bernadette sat down in the armchair and began patting Carl on the back. "Such a good little man," she cooed. "Give your auntie a great big burp, sweetheart."
Amy rolled her eyes and sat down. "If she gets any more sugary I'm going to come down with diabetes."
"Don't you pay any attention to those sourpusses," Bernadette murmured in his ear as she continued to pat his back.
"So, I asked Sheldon to move in," Penny said suddenly.
Amy and Bernadette looked at each other before looking back at her. "About damn time," Bernadette whispered, placing a hand over Carl's ear.
Amy grinned and nodded. "You act like we should be surprised. Penny, you and Sheldon are practically living together already. You both love each other. You should be living together. Now you just have to take that last step."
Penny blushed and smiled happily. "We have," she admitted. "We slept together last night. We said we love each other. I want us to plan a life together." Penny bit her bottom lip a bit. "I was wondering if one of you would baby-sit for me tonight for a few hours. I want to take Sheldon up onto the roof for dinner so we can discuss everything."
Amy quickly pulled out her phone and dialed. "Charlie? We're babysitting tonight!"
"Hey!" Bernadette whined. "No fair! Howie and I would love to baby-sit!"
Before they could begin arguing again Penny held up a hand. "Compromise! I'll pay for the pizza and a couple of movies for the four of you if you all promise not to play tug-o-war over Carl."
The women quickly agreed and they all settled into planning the perfect dinner menu.
Sheldon paced the floor of apartment 4A, anxiety making him twitch. He had come home from work, eager to see Penny, only to be met at the door by Amy telling him to come upstairs and wait for her to call him. When he questioned her, she just repeated her orders. When he tried to speak to Penny, she told him Penny was busy planning their evening and he would just have to be patient.
Calls and messages to Penny's phone went unanswered. Leonard had no answers for him. Howard, Raj and Charlie sat on the couch watching Farscape as if nothing was wrong. Sheldon looked at the clock again and growled. It was almost 7 pm! What the hell was going on?
Twin chimes went off. He watched Howard and Charlie pull out their phones and get up. They waved bye and walked out the door. He started to follow them but he jumped when his phone buzzed. He pulled it out quickly and read the message.
Meet me on the roof.
Sheldon immediately forgot all about the other two men as he headed up the stairs. He opened the roof door and stepped out. He almost tripped over his own feet when he saw what awaited him. Paper lanterns were struck overhead. A table sat in the middle with a white tablecloth and dishes. A small cart sat nearby with covered pans on it. Penny stood beside the table in a lilac dress. Her hair was piled high on her head. She was smiling softly which helped ease his anxiety.
"I hope you're hungry," Penny said. "I made your favorite." She uncovered the largest pan to reveal spaghetti with hot dog slices. The pan on the left contained garlic bread, and the bowl on the right was filled with salad.
"You did this for me?" he asked, approaching slowly.
Penny nodded. "I decided that if we're going to have a relationship, we're going to start off the right way. A romantic dinner, some pleasant conversation, and some time to relax with each other. Our friends are baby sitting, and we have three hours alone."
Sheldon grinned and crossed the roof to pull her into a hug. "Thank you."
Penny kissed his jaw and stepped back to serve them. Sheldon poured them some sweet tea before pulling out Penny's chair for her. He sat down and they began eating. Once they had finished their meal Penny cleared away the plates and Sheldon scrolled through her iPod for some music they would both enjoy. He settled on some George Strait and turned to Penny. "Would you like to dance?"
She grinned widely and nodded, taking his offered hand. "I thought you didn't dance," she teased.
"Penny, Penny, Penny. Ever since you came into my life I've found there are many things I never thought I would do, but eventually ended up doing. Dancing is the least of them."
She sighed softly and laid her head against his chest. "Do you ever wish I hadn't moved in? I know this isn't the life you imagined for yourself."
He shook his head quickly. "I am not unhappy with our life, Penny. Quite the opposite. I have good friends, a beautiful son, and you," he finished tenderly. "I am a very fortunate man."
She relaxed into him and smiled. "Good. I have enough regrets as it is. I don't want this to become one, too."
"What do you regret?" he asked. He needed to know the good and the bad, even if it hurt.
"I regret the things I said to you in anger," she whispered against his chest. "I regret the way I kept pushing you away. I regret the fact that you don't remember that night. Most of all, I regret the pain we both felt." Penny looked at and met his eyes. "But I don't regret us. I don't regret Carl. I don't regret the things we went through. However hard the last year has been, we're better for it."
"I regret that you had to do so much without me," Sheldon told her. "I regret that I missed so much. I love you, Penny. I love our son. I don't want to have anything else to regret."
Penny smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Sheldon, I want us to live together. I want us to share our lives with one another. To be a good parents. I want us to be honest and open with each other. I love you, too."
He pulled her in close for another kiss. He knew they weren't talking marriage. Maybe someday, but for now, they were talking about something much more important. This was a commitment to each other that went beyond a mere ceremony or piece of paper. It was something they would both have to pour every ounce of determination and drive into if they were to succeed. For once their stubbornness would come in handy. Neither of them would ever give up easily.
A/N: Almost there now, my dears. There's just one chapter left to go. This story has probably been the hardest one I've ever written. It changed mid-way through, I had no idea where I was going from chapter 8 on, for the most part. Time to write was limited for a long time, and the updates were a lot slower coming than I like.
That being said, I'm pretty proud of how this one has turned out. I feel like the characters took on a realism that I hadn't expected, or thought I was capable of giving them. Thank you, everyone, for all your encouragement, patience, criticism, and corrections. You guys make me a better writer.