Chapter 45

The silence that had now descended on the Hofstadter household the instant that the Undertaker had arrived and removed the body of the late Penny Hofstadter to the company's funeral parlour, was a stark contrast to the almost inhuman howl of utter despair which had announced to all, the moment that their father Leonard, had made the tragic discovery that Penny, his beloved wife and soulmate had gone.

And whether it was because of the shock or simply that Leonard was unable to cope with his great loss, his offspring couldn't tell.

Either way, the next day Leonard began wandering all over the house in a vain search for his much-beloved wife Penny.

And this caused no end of anxiety for his offspring. As it seemed that Leonard had now become even frailer than before. Particularly when he would insist on ascending and descending the stairs in his search.

Four days later it was April's turn on escort duty and she was already anxious over whether she should reunite with her husband Bob or not and this combined with her worry of her father having a fall that she suddenly thought of a way by which she could get Leonard to sit down for a spell while she got him a sandwich and a drink, but also much-needed respite as well as a coffee for herself.

So while Leonard took a toilet break she quickly turned the TV on and selected the USB input then she started the home movie that her father had taken of the family over the past years.

When Leonard returned to the lounge, April invited him to sit down and watch the old memories play on the screen.

Leonard at once captivated by the familiar scenes did so giving April her much-needed opportunity to get her father some lunch.

She quickly made him some ham sandwiches and his decaff and carried them through to the lounge. As she entered she glanced at the screen where the scene had changed to a party her mom and dad had held for Honey Marie and the twins. The Wolowitz children were there as were others from the neighbourhood.

The camera then moved from the giggling children to Penny, Amy and Bernadette who had been giving Penny a hand with the party.

They were all laughing and seemed to be sharing a private joke at Leonard's expense though Penny's eyes were filled with love towards the camera operator who April correctly guessed was her father.

"Mom was just so great wasn't she? And so beautiful too" she told her father as she went to offer him the plate of sandwiches."

But Leonard it appeared had nodded off, April noticed how peaceful he looked. And when she moved closer, she noticed that a slight smile had appeared on his face. Then she realised to her distress that her father was not breathing!

Almost as soon as the Undertaker had collected Leonard, then a quite distressed April had informed her older sister, (who had immediately returned at the news of her father's death) that she needed to leave to, as April had put it, "have some time to try and make some sense of it all," then April grabbed her jacket and left.

But April did not return that evening and all attempts to contact her proved fruitless, calls to her cell went straight to voicemail. And her friends, colleagues and acquaintances did not know where she was.

Wyatt, with not a little effort, succeeded in changing the funeral arrangements to be for both Leonard and Penny, as, after all, they were an extraordinarily close couple in life and they would surely not want to be separated in death either.

April finally reappeared, (much to her twin sister's enormous relief,) two days before the funeral, and what is more hand-in-hand with her husband Bob?

"Where have you been?" Angela hissed as soon as the twins entered the kitchen after leaving Bob comfortably seated in the lounge.

"I've been pot washing in a French restaurant," April replied mysteriously, before explaining how Bob had got the job at the restaurant.

"We have all been very worried you know, Angela informed her twin sternly. "As if it hasn't been bad enough losing both mom and dad," She added.

"I'm sorry. But it just got to me how dad couldn't cope without mom, and I realised that I felt exactly the same about my husband, and I just needed him so badly." April paused in the act of pouring some coffee into a mug and failing to notice that she was overfilling it. "You should have seen him working in that restaurant, he was confident, adept and oh, so alive, as if he was always destined to be preparing classic French dishes.

Angela hastily grabbed the coffee pot from her sister before clearing up the mess.

There were many of Penny's and Leonard's friends in attendance at the funeral, also Penny's two work friends Kelly and Sandra, (now both long retired,) had attended as well as many academics who were with Leonard at Cal-Tech.

Also quite a number that were too infirm to travel were still able to attend online via the Zoom app.

Wyatt delivered a touching eulogy which included contributions from his sisters. April had revealed how despite the occasional differences between her mom and dad they would still sit close together and how it was well known by the neighbours how the couple would regularly be holding hands when they went out together.

Honey Marie remembered how her Mom and dad were proud of all their offspring's achievements from the day they had brought their very first picture home from school to the academic and acting achievements, which resulted in an assignment at Cern (for Honey Marie) to a Nobel prize for Physics (Angela) and a best Actor Oscar (Wyatt) and Aprils long service as head of Physics at Cal-Tech.

The siblings all agreed wholeheartedly, that they could never have achieved, without the love and support bestowed on them by their parents.

A former Student related, on behalf of all the Undergrads Leonard had taught over the years at Cal-Tech how he was able to teach Physics in a way that made things stand out and by extension a little easier to be understood.

While a short film clip of Penny's acting career and as a presenter on the makeover TV show was displayed.

And then Shortly after the service Penny and Leonard were laid to rest.

The deceased couple's children were later, quite overcome by the many floral tributes as well as numerous kind messages of support for the popular and now so deeply missed couple.

Two weeks after the funeral and the three Hofstadter daughters had gathered at the home of Wyatt and Chloe to discuss what they should do next.

As the house was left to all of them Wyatt then suggested that it might now have to be sold as he was comfortable here in Tarzana, Angela wanted a condo, while April and Bob were quite happily living in their own house, "and of course Honey Marie will soon be heading back to Cern?

Honey Marie stood up in indignation, "You can't sell the house, Mom and dad loved that house too much," Honey Marie angrily told her brother, before adding, "I'm not going back anyway, I'm staying right here, in our old house."

Wyatt smiled, "That's great Honey, I've really missed you, you know. But as there is only you and Stephen won't it be too big?" Wyatt reasoned.

"Look! I know you all probably think me bat crap crazy, But I am certain mom and dad are not finished with that house. Every room bears evidence of their love," she explained, then added, "and take the Jacaranda tree in the back garden. Mom and dad planted that when they were told they were expecting me, that is over 50 years ago and it still blooms as much as it ever did and I firmly believe that there is a reason for that in that it involves them" she finished, shaking with excitement.

Wyatt opened his mouth to try and reason with her when he was suddenly interrupted from a surprising source, his own wife.

"She's right Wyatt," Chloe told him, "I have had that same feeling every time I've been there….Well since the….you know, and those trees generally only live for fifty years."

Wyatt sighed then nodded in agreement with his wife, "Okay then Honey Marie, I guess that's settled then." then he received a huge hug in relief from his oldest sister.

Angela, who had still yet to gain any enthusiasm for doing anything let alone further academic assignments and for want of anything better to do she helped her sister to carefully put some of her parents things in storage for safekeeping. Then the two women came across the large box in penny's closet.

Upon opening it Honey Marie picked up a picture frame containing a pressed red rose. Puzzled as to why her mom had kept it she turned the frame over, then seeing her mom's writing she exclaimed, "Ooh that is so romantic. It says here that dad had left it on her windscreen just because, when they were still courting."

Angela had meanwhile had picked up an old airline ticket, "I guess this has a similar story behind it too?"

Her sister having put down the picture frame had picked up a bundle of papers and began reading before hurriedly putting them down again while blushing furiously in embarrassment.

"What was that saying then?" Angela asked.

"It seems to be a thank you letter from dad to mom after the first time they…..well, you know," Honey Marie explained," still blushing.

There were quite a few things in the box, a pregnancy test, (which turned Honey Marie's face beetroot red again,) four pairs of bootees, four sonogram pictures some wrapping paper, a deep blue dress and also a yellow asthma inhaler, before finally they encountered their Mom's journal. Which Angela began to read. She, being a lot less of a shrinking violet than her older sister.

And so Angela read all about the most wonderful love story she had ever read, a story to rival that of Romeo and Juliet. A story of two individuals with different personalities and yet had still become closely bound together, that of her own parents.

Angela had not known what she was going to do, but, suddenly now she was lit up inside with the fire of inspiration with the idea of writing, what was to her an epic tale of her own parents love.

And though it may not amount to a small heap of coffee grounds regarding the rest of the world, Angela still thought it worth telling her own family the need to value what is after all most important, and that was the beauty of Love.

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At 06:00 am, Nurse Astrid Hofstadter (The adopted daughter of Penny and Leonard's son and his wife Chloe) closed her front door behind her. It had for once not been too manic on the ward this morning she thought as she headed for the shower.

After her shower she changed into her nightclothes, made herself a hot drink and after setting it down on her night-stand, she got into her bed, and reached for her auntie Angela's book and after plumping up her pillows and leaning back against them she turned to her favourite part, where Penny first realised that Leonard was the only man for her, then she began to read,...

All the gang were in 4a one Friday evening eating take out, and Penny is just offering Leonard another glass of wine when…..

The End