Chapter Twenty-Two: Return the Favor
"Ladies, you have been summoned for dinner."
Amy saw her husband standing on the porch. That's the least clothes I've seen on him this day, she thought as she gazed upon him. Only his sweater and his pants. No mittens. No hat. No thick and heavy coat. However, his arms were crossed upon his chest, vigorously rubbing his triceps. Being on the porch probably gave him false hope that he will not be exposed to the elements.
"You want to try?" Dee shouted back as she and Sunny trudged up the slope.
It wasn't that high. A good two and a half feet difference in height from the bottom to the top of the slope, running down 100 feet before it ends in the treeline. Probably the reason why he and Frank had been hearing giggles from upstairs. The girls had been enjoying themselves too much.
"No, thank you. I might crash; I do not have full control of my body weight," he replied, apologetically.
The sun had set now but its scarlet remains still illuminated the place, aiding the lamp posts strategically placed in the area.
Amy trailed behind her niece. Sheldon went inside the basement as he waited for them to catch up.
She saw that pensive expression on his face as he looked outside. Locking behind the french doors, Amy turned to Sheldon. "You and Frank had a great talk?"
"We did," he responded back, flashing Amy a timid smile.
Momentarily, Amy let the footsteps fell as Dee and Sunny ascend the stairs, gazing for their feet to disappear.
Amy faced him and whispered, "Did you smoke the cigar?" clutching his arms. She saw her brother bring that coveted cigar case that he had for years. Her dad's tradition of lighting a cigar during important events or meeting important people happened to be inherited by her brother.
Sheldon furrowed his forehead. "You know I despise smoking."
"And you drank with him?" She stared at him like a child would if they caught someone doing something wrong. Sheldon seemed undeterred by Amy's childlike lecture.
"That, I can participate. It was craft beer. And my, it was delicious," he chuckled, reddening on his ear tips and cheeks.
Amy joined in his laughter, patting his arm. "Now, don't get drunk alright," she feigned a warning.
She noticed how his reddened face grew into a smile so mischievous and precarious that Amy knew something might be up.
Amy pulled away slowly as she looked at him incredulously. "Why are you grinning like the Joker?" Surprised to know that she knew about the Joker and his distinctive, manic sneer.
"We had a great conversation." He nodded slowly, still grinning.
Amy gasped in shock. "I'm hoping it has nothing to do with me."
"Nothing to do with you?" He laughed haughtily. "Oh, Amy . . . Why else would I have a conversation with Frank? It's to know more about you!"
"That's unfair," Amy replied in a huff, pouting like Sheldon always does.
"Not at all! Given that I told you my stories, I deserve the right to know yours, even though I had to gather that information from your brother." His reply seemed to release him off the hook.
Amy was caressing his arms up and down, gazing at him in pure authenticity. Maybe this was what Frank was talking about. Maybe he'd seen it all along yet he didn't know how to name it. The thoughtfulness they were discussing; this was it. Right in front of him. Just a mere twenty minutes after they were talking about it.
In pure amazement, Sheldon ran his eyes in every possible surface of Amy's face. Her crimson cheeks and nose from the cold. Her green eyes, dark yet discreet. The soft light of a nearby lantern highlighted her features twofold.
Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around her mid-back, nestling his chin on her shoulders. Even though the layers of Amy's clothing were sensibly compact, he managed to find the warmth he's been craving.
"Why are we hugging?" Amy responded. It didn't take her a second to reciprocate his affection. As soon as Sheldon motioned his head on her neck, her arms had a mind of its own and hooked them beneath his armpits, resting it against his firm shoulder blades.
"I just like hugging people," he muttered under his breath, inhaling a whiff of what's left of her sheltered hair.
"No, you don't," she responded in incredulity. As far as she'd known, Sheldon was not a fan of hugging. Once he told her that he caught the flu due to a simple mistake of hugging Penny.
"Well, you're my people . . . so that counts."
His statement rendered her all sentimental. "Aww, you're one of my people too, Sheldon." Amy held him at arm's length."It's my birthday tomorrow," she said, bouncing on her step. Even dancing in split second.
He bobbed his head and cheered up. "That it will be. Where are you planning on celebrating?"
Amy grinned impishly and began ascending the stairs. "That'll be a secret."
"Oh, alright," he said, downcasted, but then, a renewed enthusiasm ensued. "Any clues that you might be able to share?"
Amy pivoted from the steps and incited, "Well, somewhere cold."
"That's pretty vague." Sheldon cocked his head. "How about another one?"
"Somewhere high."
Sheldon approached her at the bottom of the staircase. "A mountain! Don't tell me you'd bring us hiking?! That's undoubtedly dangerous, Amy! Do you know how many have perished scaling the mighty, snow-laden mountain? Because I do, and I don't want to be an addition to the casualties."
"No, silly. Most mountain trails are closed during winter, with a few exceptions. But I'm an amateur at hiking, so are you, so is Sunny, and I think it would be brutal if we do that on my birthday."
Sheldon shrugged and agreed.
"Okay! Come on, let's eat. I love it when Frank cooks. And with your help, I love it even more!"
Dinner had been served quickly and destroyed at a rather similar pace. Steak had been cooked and cut into perfection; Dee had only a few slices of the well-done steak and ordered Frank to finish the remaining. To extend courtesy, Sheldon only got pieces that compared into half a steak but got two skewers of chicken kebab and a whole lot of roasted potatoes and sweet potatoes. Amy indulged herself in grilled peaches and vanilla ice cream and beer. Hero got to eat alongside them, of course with his own cat food. While Sunny became the oddest child Sheldon had seen in the dining table. She all went for the vegetables! Sure Sunny had a few pieces of meat, but that girl went for half a butternut squash like she was eating a tub of ice cream.
Later, they played board games on the screened porch as an authentic fireplace (not the fake one in Amy's apartment!) heat up the hardwood floors. Cool draft from the outside started blowing inside the porch as they chatted and played. With nothing illuminating the outside, the only light in there was from the fireplace and a few lamps situated on the corners.
The fear of wildlife was always there for Sheldon as they were practically separated from nature by two layers of thick and thin screen surrounding the porch. Eventually, the fear transformed into the merriment of kindred spirits. Amidst the snowfall, they shared tales and laughter and a bit of alcohol. They retired at 10 in the evening—Sunny got to coax her father into foregoing her 9 p.m. bedtime to participate in their games.
Amy lay awake on the twin bed. Her niece sleeping peacefully on the bed next to her. Hero curled above the sheets, keeping guard of his human. She looked at her phone. 10:20. Slowly pulling away her comforter, she wore her slippers and walked the remaining steps to the door. It creaked a little as she pulled it open, enough to fit her body through the opening.
Crossing the hallway, she opened the door to Sheldon's bedroom, peeking her head and seeing him laying flat on his right side of the bed. Pulling the covers quietly, she climbed into bed with him, even rousing Sheldon from sleep.
"It's me," whispered Amy as she pecked his cheek. Sheldon just groaned and returned to his slumber.
She was already half asleep when she felt the weight beside her disappear. With her sleepy eyes, she followed Sheldon's back as he went out of the room, leaving the door ajar as light streamed in.
Moving to her side, Amy tried to go back to sleep when she suddenly felt a cold whiff of air. It was followed by the rustling of the sheets as warm air blew on her neck. Strong arms wrapped around her waist and a low hum vibrated through her body.
She opened her eyes and glanced back. Amy knew right away that smell. With the aid of the moonlight, his features were prominent, carving out the right side of his face.
Amy held his arms and pressed her body on his. It was rare to get a Sheldon Cooper cuddle, and she couldn't pass up the moment. What a wonderful experience for Sheldon to warm her like this in snowy New Hampshire. She could get a hug from Sheldon, sleep peacefully, and not get cold, all at the same time.
Sheldon deviated from her plans of falling back to sleep when she felt him prodding against her bottom, followed by feather kisses on her nape. Her hair started rising at the sloppy contact. Seconds of that, Sheldon laid her on her back and loomed over her. They stared for a split second before Sheldon's face stooped down on hers, making the contact as delicate.
His lips ended up in hers. Slow, long movements at first, taking in each other's taste. As soon as Sheldon had done his tasting, his tongue prodded on her mouth, asking for entrance. Amy, for one, liked Sheldon's kisses. She encouraged him. Matching his fervor, Amy tilted back her head to get a better angle.
"I was . . . hmm . . . thinking," he said between kisses.
Out of breath, Amy tried to respond, "Y-yes?"
Sheldon backed up, giving both the ability to catch their breath. He started softly caressing her cheek, leering at her intensely. "That I won't be able to give you my gift tomorrow . . . so I'll make it up to you now," murmured Sheldon, his lips just a few inches from hers.
Amy moaned, breathing warm air upon him and ran her hands on his chest, ultimately draping her arms on his neck. The whereabouts of his flannel pajama top was a mystery. She didn't notice if Sheldon wore it as she entered the room or he was wearing this white undershirt all along.
"How so?" Amy challenged the game Sheldon was playing. It was hot, exceptionally hot.
He brought his head down to her ears, whispering in his virile tone, "Remember that thing you did to me."
"What thing?"
"Well, I just thought I could give it back to you." Somehow, Sheldon's hand discovered the existence of her creamy thigh. He caressed her thigh gently along its surface. He deftly bunched up her long nightgown in one swoop and fitted his hand on her core.
"Ooh . . ." she moaned as she felt light, titillating touches upon her cotton panties.
"Yeah, that's right. That thing," Sheldon muttered as though attempting to stress that, indeed, he needed to do that thing. However, he wavered at her reaction. He couldn't see Amy's face. "Amy, we don't have to do it if you don't want to," Sheldon thoughtfully asked, halting at his ministrations.
She furrowed her brows and shuffled in her position. "Why wouldn't I want it? Do you think I overstepped?" Was this too much for both of them? Remembering that time when she pleasured Sheldon, everything didn't fall according to plan. Of course, the act ended well, Sheldon was disoriented and brimming with hormones, but the squabble after that was horrible.
He held his head down for a second, reminiscing about what happened. "I just thought that my outburst might have made any physical contact between us uncomfortable. I just want to make sure that you're not against what I will bestow upon you."
Amy sighed, stroking his collarbones. "Would I move into your bedroom if I didn't expect something like this to happen? I'm always expecting, Sheldon. We've been practically making out in front of my brother. Do you think that made our interactions a bit comfortable?"
"Fair point." He nodded. Returning to her hips, Sheldon went closer, breathing on her. "Do I have your permission?"
Amy arched her back, pressing her breast on his chest, eliciting a thrust from his hips. "How about we start the job now and quit talking."
"As you wish, Madam."
Amy felt his lips once again. This time, she can feel it clearly, and she can feel him explicitly on her unclothed thigh. She welcomed his tongue asking for entry, bold yet gentle as they both groaned. Hoo.
Sheldon traveled down her neck, grazing every inch of flesh as she mewled in pleasure. He adored the reaction that could make his wife moan in pleasure. What he adored more was that just hearing her cry in delight made him more confident to please her.
He drew his hand up her thigh, pushing her nightgown carefully up her body. He felt thrilling haptic fervor as he felt the bare skin of Amy's abdomen. He ran his hand across her soft stomach. The body of a woman he held so dear, perfectly embodying the woman he admired for years. Nothing of it was out of the ordinary, nothing of it was different. It was just Amy. The Amy he'd known for 4 years now.
As his fondling ascended, bare skin still welcomed him. No barrier that he expected. A grin formed on his face at the realization. "Hmm…. No bra," Sheldon muttered on Amy's neck as his palm ran upon the valley of her breasts, mischievously diverting from the treasures.
"I don't wear one when I sleep," Amy responded, breathless. Sheldon was still relentless on her neck, but his hand movements extended to the mellow side of him.
"As expected. Your nipples would penetrate on your nightgown every time our paths would cross in the morning." She heard a deep chuckle on her neck. "I don't care for it in the past, but seeing how beautiful you are, you should've gotten it in Pasadena."
Her sanity ended there, right when Sheldon pulled up her nightgown, removing it away from her skin. She lay bare on her back as Sheldon viewed her from above. The removal of her nightgown urged her arms to carry itself above her head, giving Sheldon the full display.
She couldn't see properly without her glasses, but Sheldon knelt, her legs splayed, admiring her as she moved her body.
"I have a secret." He crawled back to her, a grin formed in his lips. "When we were still in Pasadena I once heard you in the bathroom. I didn't understand what it was at that time, but I think I got the idea now. You were moaning, and you thought I wouldn't be able to hear you. Suppress it all you want but I know you moaned my name, and I guess you will right now."
Amy gasped in shock. "Sheldon!" slapping his chest playfully but with a hint of humiliation. Oh, God, he heard me!
"Yes, that exact name. But not too loud. We don't want anyone to hear you." Before she could protest, with little to no light, Sheldon found his way into her bosom. Pleasing her right with light kisses, but soon transcended into full-on sucking. His other hand found its way to her left breast, massaging it, pinching her nipples lightly.
"J-Just keep going," was the only thing Amy could say, gripping tight on his shirt.
"You bet I will," he muttered as his movements fluctuated from soft and delicate to rough and animalistic. "I might be able to return the favor, after all."
There was a time where the mere thought of this would appall her. There was also a time where she knew this would happen. Not very soon, not too long, either. Sheldon's arrival to her picturesque, New England town made her believe the impossible.
The proximity was jaw-dropping, even she couldn't tell if Sheldon was really comfortable with their contact. Was he having second thoughts? With the rate of their dalliance, how his touches were steady yet heated, it seemed like he wasn't.
Amidst the pleasure and delight, Amy asked herself: Am I having second thoughts? She peeked at the man she promised her life with. He stilled, looking at her intently, figuring out if something was wrong, halting his ministrations because of Amy's sudden silence.
Just from Sheldon's looks, Amy knew that whatever thoughts she was having, it wasn't tentative or indecisive. Much so, it was just pure ecstasy with just a hint of nervousness. Nothing she didn't experience some time ago.
To assure him and herself, Amy caressed his jaw, feeling that microscopic facial hair Sheldon had grown. At first glance, it seemed invisible, but as she touched his face, the hair started tickling her. Amy flashed him a timid smile and drew his face down, searching for the rhythm that was temporarily halted.
It took seconds to retrieve it back, and once they unearthed it, they were game on.
Sheldon returned to his ministrations down. Ignoring the temptations of her supple breasts, Sheldon carried on showing affection to other parts of her body. Her stomach was worshipped by a man who appreciated her. Her abdomen was adored where the temple of life lay hidden, waiting for the righteous man worthy to be her honorable guest. Her thighs admired the security of her womanhood.
Amy couldn't be bothered to suppress her moans. She could but a certain swipe at her core made her moans resonate in their room.
Soon enough, Sheldon managed to pull down her panties. He ran his finger upon her opening, feeling the wetness he had brought upon her.
With his head on the crook of his neck, his fingers hit the right spot, causing Amy to arch her back. "Oooh, right there, Sheldon," she cried, clutching his biceps tighter.
And so he did. His fingers focused on the hood of her clitoris, stimulating it lightly, letting the pleasure build up in every flick. And yet in every flick, it seemed like there was a different tune to Amy's cries. Some soft and weak, some quick and sharp, some deep and long. It was definitely an experiment for another time.
Sheldon slowed down his ministrations. So far Amy hadn't writhed in pleasure yet, which meant that her orgasm was still eluding them.
Amy felt how Sheldon's fingers slid its way down in search of something. As she can't see his face, she relied on the movements of his fingers. She felt one circling her opening, perceiving the new sensations that ensued.
With one agonizing push, Sheldon's finger penetrated what used to be uncharted territory. Hearing the auditory evidence of Amy's pleasure brought a titillating amount of satisfaction his way.
"Ahhh…" Amy gasped as the intrusion brought another set of sensations. "Sheldon… please."
Sheldon didn't need to be told a second time. When Amy got accustomed to his finger, Sheldon plunged in a second one, doing slow deep strokes. As he felt hands tightly clutching his neck Sheldon knew that Amy would not be happy if he continued these slow strokes.
Still resting on her neck, he drew his thumb on her clit, drawing another type of cry. His fingers inside of her had dwindled to a stop, focusing his attention on how to play with Amy's most sensitive part.
Tightening and tightening, he made his ministrations faster and stronger as Amy moaned in pleasure. Her breaking point only after Sheldon simultaneously fingered her and pushed down on her clit.
"Ahh, Sheldon!" Just as he was expecting, she called his name. Giving him the honor to be the one deserving of her.
Amy's labored breaths whiffed on his ears. He grazed his mouth on her neck and drew it up to her lips, giving her an open-mouthed kiss worthy of a photo. She arched her back, her skin pushing against the thin barrier of his shirt. Clamping her small hands on his hair, Amy drew him closer to her, letting him hear what goodness he had brought upon her body.
Carefully, Sheldon pulled his fingers from her inside, knowledgeable enough that if he pursued on his ministrations, Amy would be pushing away from his overwhelming touch.
He gazed at her face, still ecstatic that he couldn't brave to bother. Landing an intense kiss on her lips, Sheldon turned away to wash up. Of course not before he could tell her how much she adored Amy.
Amy lay shaken upon the bed. Orgasms were of her expertise during her graduate years, participating in such experiments that stimulated the nerves associated with sexual pleasure. That tradition had carried on outside of experiments, just to alleviate stress and feel a little bit of high. A hundred orgasm and so far, the one initiated by Sheldon, and Sheldon alone, was the one to beat.
Alongside the pleasure and arousal, Sheldon's had an emotional aspect to it. She blanked out halfway through, failing to hear all the musings Sheldon had been whispering in her ears.
She breathed heavily as Sheldon returned from the bathroom. He stooped down the floor gathering what clothing he threw there, and then climbing into bed. He dropped a kiss on Amy's cheek, laying his hands on her stomach and feeling the rise and fall of her breathing, now calmed down after the storm.
Amy held his arm lovingly. Now he's wearing his flannel top that he'd removed during their dalliance. She turned her head into him, face to face with Sheldon, with the remaining strength she could muster, Amy muttered, "Sheldon, you're changing."
