"Is Bernadette running late? She's usually here before me," Amy questioned, looking around Penny's apartment to find the shorter blonde was nowhere to be found.

Penny shook her head as she passed Amy a glass of wine. "She can't make it. Something about an unexpected side effect to one of the new drugs they're testing in the lab so she's working late. So, it's just the two of us for girls' night. How did you manage to get a night without Max in the middle of the week?"

"I get two Max free nights in a row this week," Amy sipped her wine as she explained, "Max has been seeing the ads on TV for a water park in San Diego all summer and has been bugging me about going. My dad offered to take him for tonight and tomorrow night. He used to take me to do things like that, my mom hated it, but I loved the adventures we'd go on. I think he enjoyed some of the things we did more than I did."

Two hours and a bottle and a half of wine later, the girls were enjoying their evening together. The giggles stopped when Penny took the conversation in a more serious direction. "Sheldon's been back for two months and neither of you have said anything about it. What did he say when he came back about why he left?"

"Nothing really," started Amy. "He said he was overwhelmed by everything going on and he needed time alone to think about all of it. He knows we need to talk about it, but he's not ready."

"And you're just going along with that lame-ass excuse? You need to tell him to grow a pair and talk to you," Penny was practically shouting at her friend. "I wouldn't have let him back into my life without making him fight to be a part of it if I were you."

Shrugging, Amy let out a small smile. "I guess you're right. I was angry with him for leaving the way he did. I'm still upset about it, but I don't want to lose him. I was miserable those two weeks he was gone."

"He needs to man up and talk to you if he wants to continue to be a part of your life," Penny was interrupted by the door opening. "Hi, Leonard."

Leonard noticed the wine bottles on the coffee table and the state his fiancé and Amy were in, "I take it you've had a good girls' night?"

"I should get going," Amy looked around the room for her purse. Finding it, she crossed the room to the door, "Good night guys."

"Are you okay to drive, Amy? I can give you a ride," offered Leonard.

Amy paused, "Yeah. I'll get an Uber or something. I'll talk to you later."

"Good night. Think about what I said," Penny called after her before the door was closed.

Amy started down the stairs before turning back around. She paused in front of the door to apartment 4A, debating if she should knock, let herself in, or go home. She chose the second option and opened the door. She found the living room and kitchen were dark, but the light in the hallway between the bathroom and Sheldon's room was still on. "Sheldon!" she yelled down the hallway. "We need to talk."

"Amy?" Sheldon asked, emerging from the bathroom. "It's almost ten o'clock. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be getting home to Max?"

"I was having a girls' night with Penny. Max is with my dad in San Diego tonight so I've got all the time in the world. I'm not leaving here until we talk." The wine plus Penny's opinion had boosted Amy's confidence and she had firmly planted herself in front of Sheldon with her arms crossed across her chest.

Sheldon eyed his girlfriend for a moment before saying anything. "Alright. We can go out in the living room. May I fix you a hot beverage? You appear to be drunk and could use it." Amy turned and retreated into the living room. Rather than sitting in her usual spot on the middle cushion next to Sheldon's spot, she sat in the white chair, waiting for Sheldon to return with her beverage. He passed her a mug and sat in his spot with his mug before speaking, "What do you want to talk about?"

"What the hell, Sheldon? You know damn well what I want to talk about. I want to talk about what you've been avoiding talking about all summer. I want to talk about why you left. It's been two months since you've returned and the most you've said is that you needed time to think and that you were overwhelmed. How do you think I felt while you were gone? I tell you I want to find out if you are the donor I chose to have my son and you just up and left without a word. You were the one that brought up you donated sperm. I thought we knew each other well enough that you'd know I'd look into if we'd used the same clinic. You could have kept your mouth shut and never told me."

Playing with the teabag string hanging over the side of his cup, Sheldon took a breath before replying, "I don't like when you drink with Penny, but I guess we're doing this now. As I said when I got back, I left on that trip because I was feeling overwhelmed with everything and I was scared."

"No," Amy replied as she set her empty mug on the table in front of her. "You don't get to say you're overwhelmed or scared anymore. Do you know how often I've felt overwhelmed since Max was born? I don't get to run away, though, because I have responsibilities. Raising a child is one of the most terrifying things in the world. Yes, our situations are different in that I chose to have a child and be a single mother, but you chose to continue talking to me and to pursue a relationship with me after you learned about Max. You know I was so hesitant to introduce you to Max that it took nearly a year after we met for that to happen."

"I'm sorry, Amy. I really am. I wish I could go back and not leave on that train. I've spent a lot of time thinking about why I left the way I did and I was scared. I was scared of what would happen if we did the test and I wasn't the donor. I knew when I walked into that clinic that there could come a day that someone would contact me and say I was their father, I just wasn't expecting it to be my girlfriend and her son. You've told me how Max used to ask all the time if I was his dad or if I could be his dad. I was scared of how he would react if we got the test and it wasn't a match. What if he hated me because I'm not his dad and didn't want to see me anymore? You and Max are the two most important people in my life. I can't imagine not having the two of you in my life," Sheldon was trying to hide the tears forming in the corners of his eyes.

Noticing Sheldon's lack of eye contact while trying to stifle his tears, Amy moved next to him on the couch. She pulled him into her arms. "Nothing would change if we do the test and you aren't the donor."

"How do you know nothing would change? Maybe you'll decide to look for his donor and include him in Max's life," suggested Sheldon.

"That won't happen, Sheldon. I only wanted to get the test since you brought up that it's a possibility because you donated at the clinic I went to," Amy wrapped her arms more tightly around her boyfriend.

Fighting through sniffles, Sheldon asked again, "But how can you be so sure that nothing would change?"

"Because I love you."

Sheldon pulled back to look at Amy's face. "You do?"

"I don't want you to say it back just because social convention dictates. I know you're not ready and you're feeling a lot of things right now. I wanted to tell you months ago, but then you left and things haven't been the same between us since you came back."

"I love you, too. There's no denying I have feelings for you that can't be explained any other way." Sheldon leaned in to briefly kiss Amy before speaking again. "I'm sorry for running away and not talking to you about this. I've had years to get comfortable with this possibility. You've only known for a few months and have processed this information better than I think I'll ever be able to. I want to do the test eventually, but is it okay if we wait a little longer?"

"I want to ask how much longer you think you'll need, but I know this is a lot to process. It is for me, too."

"I know I've said it multiple times tonight, but I really am sorry for the way I've been acting this summer. I promise to let you know as soon as I know I'm ready to handle whatever the results of the test are. Can I ask one thing?" Sheldon felt Amy nod her head against him before he continued. "If you have been angry with me for over two months, why have you continued our relationship? Why did you keep seeing me?"

"I was doing what I felt was best for Max. He thought he had done something that made you leave. If he knew you were back in Pasadena, but not seeing us, he would have definitely thought he had done something. Yes, I was upset with you, but I still loved you. I still wanted you in my life, as well as Max's."

Sheldon was quiet for a while, comfortable holding Amy against him with her arms around his midsection. "Amy, it's nearly midnight. As much as I'm enjoying sitting here with you, I think it's time to head to bed."

Glancing at her watch, Amy saw Sheldon was correct at what time it was. "I'm sorry for keeping you up so late. I should head home."

"Good night, Amy," Sheldon stood and walked Amy to the door. "Let me know you get home safe."

Thank you so much for the reviews. I loved reading the ones for the last chapter, knowing what was coming in this chapter. I did tweak a few things after reading some of the reviews, but I like Shamy's conversation better now, so thank you for the insightful reviews. I've always loved drunk Amy and think Penny's suggestion plus being tipsy would cause her to finally confront Sheldon about the way he'd been avoiding this conversation.