Author's Note: Hi Shamy fans! Back with a new update. Currently working on the next chapter for "The Impalpable Chemistry" as well. Thanks to all the favs, follows, reviews, and to all the new readers who found this story.

Shoutout to the following users: thatAwkwardPotato, redhead59901, MobyShamy4ever, Eluri, DC34, and to all the guest readers. I appreciate it so much.

If you leave enough favs, follows, and reviews, I'll be more motivated to continue this story, so please tell me what you think! Enjoy Chapter 3.

Chapter 3

The Engagement Reaction & The Roommate Transmogrification

Currently slicing up a brain cadaver in UCLA as usual, Amy received a text from Penny telling her that Howard's mom got admitted to a hospital.

P: Howard said she had a heart attack after hearing about their engagement.

A: Wow. Poor, Bernadette. I didn't think interfaith marriages were controversial enough to cause such a reaction nowadays.

P: That's what Howard says. We're with Bernadette right now. Are you sure you can't go here? She could use some more cheering up.

While conversing with Penny, she was surprised to receive a FaceTime request from Sheldon.

A: Give me a moment, Penny. Sheldon wants to FaceTime with me.

P: Oooh. Wouldn't want to interrupt Pasadena's favorite power couple. Go ahead, lovebirds ;) Text me all the deets later.

Amy brushed it off and answered Sheldon, who looked less than comfortable.

"Amy, I need you!" He said in a panic.

"To… what?" Amy furrowed her eyebrows.

"I'll give you $1000 to drive me home."

She rolled her eyes. "I can't, Sheldon. I'm working."

"Can't you say there's an emergency? Howard's mother's at the hospital. Don't you care about me?"

"You mean, Mrs. Wolowitz?"

"Uh, sure. That too…"

"What is with you today? Earlier, you sent me what happened to be a drunk text saying my lips tasted like cranberry juice."

"I-I was inebriated! I substituted tequila for mouthwash when I drank from Leonard's glass."

"Let me guess. You're currently waiting out the exponential growth period of the virulent organisms trooping through your microvilli into your circulatory system?"

"How did you-"

"Penny texted me. Said she missed talking to you."

"Do women just tell each other everything in their lives as it happens?"

"Yes."

"Even when we…"

"We…?"

"Uh, never mind that. This day is turning out to be the worst. I feel like I'm in hell."

"I understand your germaphobic tendencies are acting up again but I'm afraid I've got a lot on my plate right now."

"Fine. Raj wouldn't drive me home too. I guess I'll figure this out by myself."

"That's good. Face your fears. It's just a hospital."

"Just a hospital. I'll have you know that a relative of mine-"

"Save that story for later when I get off of work. Good luck, Sheldon. Give Howard and his mother my regards." Amy hung up.

"That was rude." He frowned.

Amy wasn't really busy at work. She was just trying to avoid Sheldon as much as possible. After much reflection, Amy couldn't deny her growing attraction for the brilliant and blue-eyed physicist any longer and she desperately needed to put a stop to it.

"I'm not going to fall in love with Sheldon."

This was her mantra every time she came into contact with him. Everything was all under control. Things were finally getting back to normal between them and she couldn't be happier. Or at least that´s what she´s telling herself.

She looked back to her conversation with Penny.

Flashback - Penny's apartment.

(Author's Note - refer to Chapter 1)

"So… How'd Halo night with the guys go?" Penny said with a suggestive tone.

"It was a disastrous experience. I could barely learn how to play that game in such a short amount of time. Pardon the slang but I 'sucked the big one.'"

Penny could tell that Amy wasn´t mentioning Sheldon on purpose. "I'm not talking about the game."

"…"

With Amy subconsciously fiddling with her hands and the deep shade of red on her face, Penny could tell from her reaction that something interesting happened.

Penny squealed in delight. "Shut up. Tell me everything!"

Amy told Penny everything in detail. How Sheldon wanted her as his partner and uncharacteristically took hold of her hands to teach her the controls.

"And he didn't use Purell? Wasn´t weirded out by the contact?"

Amy shook her head. "It was quite baffling, really. Quite frankly, his odd behavior was a factor on why I couldn't get a handle of Halo at all."

"Enough about the game, Ames. This is huge! Sheldon doesn't like touching anyone! Or anyone touching him. He must really be comfortable around you without realizing it."

Amy was looking for reasons to convince herself that it wasn't a big deal. But it clearly was, that's why she didn't stay for long at their apartment and went straight to Penny's in a flustered state.

"Is it really surprising? We're both like-minded individuals who enjoy each other's company."

"Yeah, but I've hung out with the guys for almost 4 years now and I've never seen Sheldon act this way towards anyone. I've thought about it while you were there and I can say that Sheldon treats you differently from the rest of us. Even all those girls who had their eyes on him couldn't stand a chance."

"Hang on. There were women who showed interest in Sheldon?"

"Yes. None of us couldn't believe it either."

"And why couldn't any of you believe it? He's an attractive man. Tall, brilliant, and his hygiene is impeccable. N-Not that I pay any attention…" Amy looked away, shaking her head in disbelief for saying those things out loud.

Penny hid her smirk. "Well, he'd definitely be a lot cuter if he wasn't such a whack-a-doodle."

"If you don't mind me asking, who were these women?"

"Let me think." Penny tried to list them with her fingers. "Well, there was Raj's blind date, Lalita… A grad student named Ramona who turned out to be a real bitch. There were some other grad students that I can't seem to remember… There's also this girl named Martha that Raj told me about… Oh. And I don't think this counts but Leonard's mother kissed him when she was drunk but both of them confirmed that it didn't meant anything."

Amy cleared her throat. "Wow… That's a lot of women." She had her eyes downcast. "I wonder why Sheldon never told me about them..." She said softly.

"Well, he never actually paid any mind to them at all. And he's as blind as a bag of rocks so… Wait. You're jealous." Penny teased.

"No, I'm not! You can't prove it. I mean we could stick some electrodes in my head and see if my left frontal cortex lights up-" Amy said lost in thought, intrigued with the idea.

Penny could tell that Amy was in denial. It was obvious that Amy was more aware of her feelings than she let on. Sheldon and her were alike in a lot of ways but she could tell that Amy wanted to get out there more. I mean, the person she considered the female version of Sheldon was slowly opening up to her and Bernie. Penny didn't even think she'd see this side of her and that's why she was so surprised when Amy flirted with Sheldon at that club.

"Look, Ames. I know you want my help and all but you're the only one who can figure out how you truly feel."

"I see."

Suddenly, Amy stood up.

"You're going?"

"Yes. Thank you for your time, Penny. Have a great night."

Before Amy could leave, Penny called out to her.

"Wait! That's it? What about your feelings for Sheldon?"

"Oh, that? I have come to a conclusion that this was all a mistake. While this is all fairly new to me, I am certain that Sheldon and I are content with our current arrangement and that it's unnecessary to explore it any further." She snorted. "These confusing feelings will eventually leave my system just as it did with Zack."

"What if it doesn't- damn it, she left." Penny looked at the clock. It was already half past midnight. She sighed and went to bed.

After that chat with Penny, Amy started paying close attention to her recent interactions with Sheldon and monitoring all her responses. She was perplexed that the feelings she thought would be brief continued lingering. Sheldon was slowly pontificating his way right into her heart and she didn't even realize that she was purposely ignoring him because of that fact.

The whole "heels vs. shoes" dilemma prompted her to think about what she really wanted. And the fact of the matter is — she just wasn't prepared to hear the answer. Sure, she was looking forward to trying out things outside of her comfort zone. But the idea of actually pair bonding with someone was extremely terrifying. She deemed it unnecessary all her life only for her to consider it because of Sheldon. She hated feeling this way. Things between them wouldn't have been so complicated if he just didn't tell her that she kissed him that night. But she couldn't blame him for doing that. He just told her the truth of what happened. She could only blame herself and her stupid animal hindbrain.

She thought about how difficult it was growing up with no friends and found it amazing how she's managed to suddenly gain a wonderful friend and become a part of his social group. But it does beg a a number of questions she's been pondering lately: Should she even entertain these thoughts about Sheldon? Is she only showing interest in him just because of her sudden desire to participate in all these social conventions?

This confusion is what caused her so much discomfort. Because if she finally figured out what it all meant, it wouldn't result in anything anyway. She thought back to Sheldon's overreaction when she asked him to meet her mother. The way he tried cutting off all contact and changing his address just so she wouldn't be able to reach him. Despite resolving the misunderstanding, Amy came to understand that the idea of Sheldon ever considering her as a romantic partner was impossible.

Deciding to accept the status quo of their relationship as it is, she followed his advice with Zack and started suppressing whatever romantic feelings she had and went back to her usual demeanor towards him (coming out as very cold and distant on Sheldon's end). But who was she fooling? There was more of an adverse reaction to this Kolinahr technique Sheldon talked about. If he thought she was getting annoyed with him it was far from it. It felt like torture having to act like he didn't have any power over her.

When she got a call from Leonard saying that Sheldon was in quarantine for exposing himself to a disease, she finally convinced her superior to let her leave early for an emergency and immediately left to drive straight to the hospital (not before getting Sheldon something to eat).

Hours later.

Sheldon woke up to see Amy in a hazmat suit, preparing him some food.

"Amy?" He said with a hint of surprise.

"Good. You're awake."

"I didn't think you'd show up."

"Well, I'm doing Leonard and Penny a favor by bringing the chicken noodle soup you asked for."

"Does it have the little stars?"

"Yes."

"Terrific." He smiled.

"When I said face your fears, I didn't mean actually exposing yourself to a deadly disease."

"Well, it wouldn't have happened if you came to my rescue like I asked." He pouted.

"How long will you be here?"

"Two weeks."

"I figured as much. You know, Sheldon. Don't you think this is getting out of hand? I could prepare a course of treatment for your mysophobia if you'd like."

"And how would that go? I know how that works and you can't force me to be repeatedly exposed to something I find no reason to involve myself with. That's just icky." Sheldon showed a look of disgust. Amy served his chicken noodle and he took a sip from it. "Mhm. Yummy."

"It's supposed to help you, Sheldon. If you tried doing something about it, you wouldn't have been in this fix."

"My point still stands. And how dare you? You've known me long enough to know that I'd hate that idea."

"It was just a suggestion."

"Well, don't bother."

In any normal situation, Amy would get mad at Sheldon for reacting so harshly but she figured she was overstepping her boundaries a little bit. And this was definitely far from a normal situation.

"I'm sorry."

After a moment of silence, Sheldon spoke up.

"…You're forgiven. Thanks for the soup." He said meekly.

Amy could feel her heart swell. "You're welcome. Goodbye, Sheldon."

Before she could leave, Sheldon stopped her.

"Wait."

"Is there a problem?"

"Can you stay here a little longer?"

Amy gave in and stayed for a little while. Even when it was kind of hard staying in the suit for a long time. There she was wondering why she couldn't refuse him even if she wanted to.

"Okay, you finished your soup. Time to get some rest."

"Can you sing Soft Kitty?"

Amy remembered Sheldon telling her about the song one time. She never thought he'd request it from her. "Isn't that for when you're sick?"

"Exposed to a contagious pathogen and undergoing mandatory quarantine is a type of being sick." He said in a childlike voice.

Amy sighed. "How do the lyrics go again?"

Sheldon taught her the words and she learned them without fail. She started singing it with Sheldon's eyes closed. He seemed to be enjoying it.

"That was nice.¨

¨Good.. Uh, bye, Sheldon. Feel better soon."

His mysophobia sure is selective. Or maybe this is just his pathological need to rely on others just to feel important. Great. Now I'm neuro-analyzing Sheldon Cooper.

She snapped out of her thoughts when she heard his voice again.

"We´ll still call at our usual time, right?"

"..Of course." She kept herself from turning to see him.

"And you'll come and visit me again when you´re available?"

"Yes, Sheldon. I will."

With that, Amy left. If she had turned around, she would've seen Sheldon give her a smile that he unknowingly reserved for her.

Amy left as quickly as she could, removed her suit, and drove as fast as she could to her apartment. Away from the hospital, away from Sheldon, and away from all her feelings.

Talking to him was like talking to an old version of herself in the mirror. He was someone so stubbornly fixated on keeping everything exactly as they were. Someone who chose to stay in the dark in fear of taking risks or experiencing failure. Only then did she learn that she didn't want to be that way anymore. She wanted to change.

You can't force me to be repeatedly exposed to something I find no reason to involve myself with.

It's supposed to help you, Sheldon. If you tried doing something about it, you wouldn't have been in this fix.

That small exchange with Sheldon rang true to her ears. Amy was doing exactly what Sheldon was doing in terms of how he handled his own fears. That's when it hit her. It was wrong of her to avoid her feelings in hopes that they'd go away. She should just allow herself to go through all these intense emotions to help her get her feelings under control and make it easier for her to spend time with him — keeping in mind that she should be subtle enough not to scare Sheldon away for the sake of their friendship.

She'll treat it like an experiment — Schrodinger's Cat.

"I may or may not be falling in love with Sheldon."

And she was okay with that.

2 weeks later.

During one of their usual calls, Sheldon expressed that he was very impressed to see Bernadette getting her PhD.

"It's indeed admirable. Although, it is microbiology."

"Your doctorate is in neurobiology. I fail to see the distinction."

"I'll make it simple for you. I study the brain, the organ responsible for Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. Bernadette studies yeast, the organism responsible for Michelob Lite. Is there something wrong with your neck?"

Sheldon explained his discomfort. "It's a little stiff. What a remarkably fragile structure to support such a valuable payload. Not unlike balancing a Faberge egg on a Pixie Stick."

"Have you considered massage?"

"I'd like to respond to that sarcastically. Yes, I relish the thought of a stranger covering my body with oil and rubbing it."

Amy clarified herself before Sheldon would lecture her again on his phobia. "I was proposing you massage your muscles with your own hands."

"Still sounds like a lot of unnecessary touching."

"Trust me. With your right hand, locate the spot where the scapula meets the acromion process."

"Alright."

"Now push your third finger along the ridge of the shoulder blade, making a small rotation as you do so."

"Rotating."

"You should feel a small node-like object rolling back and forth along the bone."

"You mean the myofascial point?"

"Obviously. Now bear down on it like the seventh grade noogies we all know too well."

Sheldon started hitting the right spot and felt all his cares melting away. "Oh, dear Lord, yes, yes, oh, yes! Amy, I've never been touched like this before!" He was in sheer ecstasy. "Oh! Oh, my hands are magic!"

Amy started nodding her head, slowly becoming uncomfortable. "Don't flatter yourself. Your hands are blunt tools guided by my knowledge of the nervous system. I could just as easily have paralyzed you."

"There's someone at my door."

Oh, thank God.

"That doesn't interest me. Goodbye."

She quickly dropped the call let out a huge "hoo" sound. Amy felt like she betrayed herself, admitting to have used Kolinahr to suppress her obvious arousal at hearing Sheldon make those sounds.

She went to the bathroom to use the one thing she kept hidden in her cabinet. Something told her that this wasn't going to be the last time she would find herself looking for it.

"Gerard, don't fail me now."

End of Chapter 3.

Author's Note: There you have it, folks! A new chapter. Hope y'all like it. I´ll be moving on to 5x01/5x02 this time for the next chapter. We'll see where my imagination takes me.

I was having a hard time balancing Sheldon coming off as sweet and coming off as a jerk. I realize this is Season 4 Sheldon so I tried my best not to make him too out of character since this is all hypothetical with respect to what really happened on the show. Would love to hear your thoughts. Maybe y'all could also suggest some prompts of what you'd want to see in my stories.

If you haven't read "The Impalpable Chemistry" yet, I sincerely hope you check it out. Also, to those who already read it, sorry for the long wait. Just know I won't leave y'all hanging.

Please continue leaving a review! A fav and follow would also be appreciated, so if you haven't, what are you waiting for? Until next time, Shamy fans!