A/N Thanks again for the reviews. Some of you are writers yourselves so you know how much they mean to me. The show is over but I still own nothing.
During the time that Leonard spent in Paris, Warren celebrated his second birthday. In addition to the party with the family and others, Leonard arranged to have a separate skype party for the gang. Leonard was afraid it would be awkward when Claudette showed up, but she and Gerard were fine together.
Leonard had been thrilled when Warren's first word was Da-Da. The rest of the family were soon rewarded with his rendition of Gerard's name and Grandpa and Grandma.
He was also beginning to walk and be an individual.
Leonard had thought long and hard where he should live in the states. In the end, he decided that although the offer from Princeton was tempting, New York held too many memories of Monique. He also had been moved by how the group had supported him and realized he would miss them.
As he was getting ready to leave, he was persuaded by Claudette to go out for dinner as a goodbye gesture. She had stopped over occasionally and he enjoyed her company. They had a good time but just parted as friends, saying they would keep in contact.
Back in Pasadena, Penny had become a regular on her Soap and was working four or five days a week. Sheldon was spending even more time at work and she could tell he was apparently reaching an important point. By the time he came home, Penny was already asleep and he often left before she woke up.
Sarah tried to get her to go out, but as non-existent their marriage was becoming, she was not going to take a chance on cheating on someone again.
She was thrilled to be in on the group's interface with Leonard and Warren. When Leonard told them he was going to live in Pasadena, the entire group was happy and excited. Sheldon on the other hand was not particularly interested.
Per Leonard's instructions they were able to get him into an apartment not very far from Howard and Bernadette. He even trusted them to furnish it so everything would be ready when he arrived. He had thought about seeing if there was anything available at either Caltech or UCLA, but in the end decided he had enough money to just enjoy spending time with Warren.
About two weeks before Leonard was to arrive, Penny got a call from a number she didn't recognize.
"Hello."
There was silence at the other end and she was about to hang up, when the other party spoke up, "Penny, this is Amy."
To say she was stunned would be a vast understatement. Amy was one person she though she would never hear from again. With the surprise came a large shot of guilt.
Amy had gone on, "Is Sheldon there? "I tried to call him but his phone must be turned off."
Penny struggled to recover; finally she got out, "He usually shuts it off when he is working."
"He is still at work? It is eight o'clock out there."
"He's been working long hours lately. I hardly ever see him." She immediately regretted saying the last part.
If Amy noticed, she didn't show it, "Okay. It is very important I talk to him. Have him call me when he gets home, whatever time it is."
"Alright, I'll be sure and tell him." She hesitated, "Is there any message, or can I help at all?"
Amy's voice turned cold, "No, Penny, there is nothing I want from you. Just have him call me." She then hung up.
It was almost eleven o'clock when Sheldon came home. When he saw Penny sitting waiting for him, he immediately said, "Penny, why are you up so late? I hope you have no amorous plans; I am very tired."
Penny smirked, thinking how long it had been since they had been together. "No, Sheldon." Then she had to smile, "I am up because I received a phone call. You'll never guess who it was from."
"Please, Penny, I am in no mood for games. I am going to bed."
As he passed her, she said, "It was from Amy."
For one of the few times in his life, Sheldon was speechless. He looked at her, his eye widening, "Amy?"
After a few moments, he got out, "Why was she calling after all this time?"
"I don't know, she wouldn't tell me anything. She just said it was very important and to call when you got home, whatever time it was."
"Very well, give me the number."
Having apparently recovered and looking like he had realized something, he told Penny he would call her from his room and not to disturb him. She heard him go into his room and lock the door.
Penny was a little angry for a moment and then shrugged, it had been some time since they had done anything as husband and wife; why should this be any different.
Deciding it was a waste of time to think any more about it, she headed off to bed.
When he got into his room, Sheldon had to tell himself to settle down. It was possible he was wrong about why she called. No, it had to be the project, she would never want to talk to him again otherwise.
He quickly changed into his pajamas and sitting on his bed, dialed the number that Penny had given him.
"Hello, Sheldon, thank you for calling me."
Sheldon was stunned at hearing her voice, he hadn't realized how much he missed her. The guilt he had felt when he saw how he had hurt her returned.
"Hello, Amy, Penny said it was important."
Amy was angry at herself. She had told herself she hated him. That she would not feel anything. But hearing his voice made her feel the pain over again, but it also made her realize how much she missed hearing his voice.
"It is about the project."
Sheldon was elated, "I hoped that was it." He hesitated and then went on, "In fact, I was planning to contact you myself soon."
"You were, why?"
"I have been working on the project after work hours for the last two years. Of course, since it is a theory that needs a combination of knowledge from Physics and Neurobiology, I was restricted in how far I could go. But I believe I have gone as far as I can with the Physics portion."
He took a deep breath, "I admit I thought of looking to find someone else to work with, assuming you would not want anything to do with me, but I knew that would be highly unethical. I would at the least need your permission."
Amy was amazed. Sheldon's experience mirrored her own. When she returned to her alma mater, she had been heartbroken. It began to even affect her work. When a coworker found her sobbing in the middle of the day, she had to face the fact she needed help. Thankfully, the university was understanding and urged her to talk to the school counselor. The counselor, Dr. Joann Meadows, gave her back her life. Then one day, she had finally got up the courage to open some boxes from her life in Pasadena. She found the writings she and Sheldon had done on a theory they had postulated together. She was going to throw it away, but her scientific curiosity took over. The more she worked on it, the more intrigued and excited she had become.
"I understand, Sheldon, I have had the same experience. I have also gone as far as I can without some assistance." She hesitated, "It was our idea, we should both get credit for it."
Sheldon was shocked and overjoyed. He was stunned to realize how much he wanted to work with her again. "I am very pleased to hear that. I suppose the first step should be to exchange papers."
"That seems logical." She paused for a few moments, "I would assume we should exchange non-disclosure agreements."
Sheldon surprised her and himself by saying, "As much as I enjoy legal documents, you are a colleague. I think we can trust each other."
They exchanged email addresses and sent each other their papers. They decided to get back together in two weeks with ideas on how to proceed.
"Goodbye, Sheldon," after a pause, "It was good to talk to you again."
"Goodbye, Amy, I feel the same."
The next morning Penny made sure to be up early so she could talk to Sheldon. She had been thinking about doing something about their situation for some time and the took the call from Amy as a sign to go forward with it.
When Sheldon finished making his breakfast, he was surprised when Penny made an appearance.
"Penny, why are you us so early?"
"You shouldn't be surprised, I wanted to ask what the call with Amy was all about."
"If you must know, we discussed a project we started beforeā¦"
"It seems we have both been working on it and she had reached a point where she needed my help."
"Couldn't she get someone else to help her?"
Sheldon gave her his condescending look, "It was our idea. Not only would it be unethical to move forward without me, she know I am better qualified to work on this than anyone else."
"So, what happens now?"
"Do you really need to know all this?"
"Just curious. I mean when she left, she made it clear she never wanted to have anything to do with either one of us."
"I have already explained that. But since you are apparently going to continue this, we exchanged papers and will talk to each other in another couple weeks. Now, may I eat my breakfast in peace?"
"No, there is something else we need to discuss." She took a deep breath. "Sheldon, it has become clear that this marriage has become a sham. We hardly ever see each other and haven't had sex for months. Sarah, a woman I met at class, has told me I can come and live with her for a while."
She paused and then continued, "I have decided to take her up on her offer. I need to get out of here and away from you for a while. We both need to think what we want to do."
Sheldon was surprised, why was she doing this now? He realized it didn't bother him as much as it should. It would actually good to be alone. He could continue on his work without any interruptions.
"If that is what you want, I think you should go ahead. How long of a separation were you considering?"
"I don't know. I just need to get away and think."
"Very well, when do you plan to do this?"
"I don't see any reason to wait. I will move out as soon as I arrange things with Sarah."
"Now that we have settled that, can I finally eat my breakfast and head for work?"
Penny sighed, she was glad no one had made a scene but it also just gave more proof of how their relationship had deteriorated.
"Yes, Sheldon, you can eat your breakfast."
In the next two weeks, Penny moved out to live with Sarah. She quickly decided it had been the right thing to do.
Amy and Sheldon did their research and were equally impressed with what the other had accomplished. When they talked again, they decided they needed to get together to finish up the work. Although both had been hesitant, their excitement and passion for the project overcame their reservations. Amy decided she would like to see the others again so told Sheldon she would arrange to meet with him in Pasadena.
Leonard spent most of his last month in Paris with Pierre, Marie, and Gerard. He wanted them to have as much time with Warren as possible. He felt guilty about leaving but also looked forward to being with his friends.
After an emotional farewell, Leonard and Warren arrived in Pasadena.
