"Good morning, everyone," Sheldon said, approaching the cafeteria table the other guys were eating breakfast at.
Howard and Raj exchanged a look, questioning Sheldon's recent demeanor. It had not gone unnoticed that his mood had been happier, lighter almost, for the past few days. "What's going on with you?" Howard finally asked. "You've been weirdly chipper since Monday and it's kind of weirding me out. It's not Amy's birthday or your anniversary, so it's not because you got laid."
"For the record, Amy and I do it more often than just her birthday and our anniversary," he said rather matter of factly. "But that's not the reason for my recent mood. I can't tell you why I'm happy lately."
Amy spotted the four men from the doorway and weaved her way around tables to join them. "Hey, guys. I know today is Friday and it's usually video game night, but I just want to make sure that's still the plan?"
"As far as I know it is. Are you and the girls planning something for girls' night?" Leonard questioned.
"No, just checking since you canceled last week. I've gotta get back to my lab. We're about to start a big project and I can't be late," she explained.
Amy started to walk away, but stopped when Sheldon called after her. "Amy, wait. I'll walk with you." He quickly ran after his wife, leaving the other men at the table.
Waiting for the couple to exit the cafeteria, Raj asked, "They're being weirder than usual, right? It's not just me thinking that?"
His question was met with Leonard and Howard shaking their heads at him. "No, they're up to something and I'm pretty sure Penny knows whatever is going on," Leonard speculated. "She and Amy have been texting more than usual, plus they'd started going for walks after dinner a few times a week."
"Maybe Penny's just nervous about the baby and Amy's giving her advice or something. After all, Amy has been through this before," suggested Raj.
"So has Bernadette and she hasn't been doing anything out of the ordinary," Howard pointed out.
Leonard grinned, "Penny's horrible at keeping secrets. I can try to get her to spill whatever's going on, I'll work on her over the weekend and let you know what I find out."
Everyone gathered at apartment 4A for pizza that evening. The guys would be playing video games after dinner, while the girls went across the hall for girls' night. Leonard and Penny were the last ones to arrive and Penny spotted Amy gathering plates in the kitchen and rushed over to help. Noticing the girls were whispering, Leonard loudly interrupted them. "What is going on between the two of you? I've noticed a lot of texting, not to mention your newfound enjoyment of evening walks."
Raj overheard this and nudged Leonard, "Way to be subtle about finding out."
"I never said I was going to be subtle."
Sheldon heard Leonard's comment while Max put his hands over his mouth, catching Howard's attention. "You," he said pointing at the boy. "You know what's going on."
"Mom, Dad. You need to tell them," Max begged his parents. "I promised I wouldn't say anything."
"Okay. We were going to tell everyone tonight, but I guess we'll tell them now," Sheldon started while standing from his spot to join Amy in the kitchen. He looked at her and she nodded, prompting him to continue. "Penny already knows, but that's only because she figured it out on her own. Amy's thirteen weeks pregnant."
The room erupted in cheers as everyone gathered around the couple. "How could you keep this a secret for thirteen weeks?" Bernadette accosted the couple.
Amy took a breath before answering, "We've only kept it a secret for about six and a half weeks. Everything was so crazy with winning the Nobel, I didn't realize it right away. I know you told us a lot sooner when you were pregnant and so did Penny, but Sheldon and I decided to wait until my first trimester was over, just in case. But everything is going great with no problems so far. Like Sheldon said, Penny figured it out for herself and I swore her to secrecy."
"I kept it a secret, too," Max proudly stated. "Mom and dad told me I couldn't say a word to anyone. Not you guys, not grandma and grandpa, nor Grandma Mary and Meemaw, not even my friends at school."
Eventually, the group separated into their regular Friday night activities, but the discussion of the newest offspring of the group continued in both apartments. "Way to go, I didn't think you had it in you to knock Amy up," Howard joked while punching Sheldon in the arm.
"Why would you think I didn't have it in me?" Sheldon didn't understand what Howard was implying. "I've already produced one child with Amy, granted not in the traditional manner, but all the same things are required, regardless of how the child is conceived." Leonard leaned over and whispered something in Sheldon's ear, causing his jaw to drop. "I am perfectly capable of what you're saying I can't do, Howard. For the record, I enjoy it greatly when Amy and I are intimate, I just don't care for it that often."
"Can we stop talking about this and talk about something different? Or just not talk at all and play video games?" Max asked, turning red in the face.
Sheldon nodded his head and turned to the other guys, "Max recently learned how babies are made, and knowing that Amy and I have done that grosses him out. We've agreed to not talk about that aspect of our lives when he's within earshot."
Across the hall, Bernadette passed on opening the bottle of wine, knowing she would be the only one drinking. "How did I miss that you didn't drink anything the past several weeks when we've had girls' night?"
Amy shrugged, "Penny knew we weren't telling anyone, so she'd swap the glass of wine you'd pour with grape juice. So two weeks ago when you were amazed how quickly we finished the bottle, that was all you. Clearly, you've learned a thing or two from Penny over the years."
"That explains a lot about why I don't remember what happened after Howie and I got home that night," blushed Bernadette. "So, you've been talking to Penny about this, but I know nothing, so tell me everything." Bernadette rested her elbows on her knees and placed her chin on her hands, staring at Amy.
"Okay, um, my due date is September second. I've had a little morning sickness, maybe a few times a week, but not any worse than when I had Max. We have another six weeks before my appointment to find out if it's a boy or a girl. I kind of don't want to find out, because I found out with Max and I want to be surprised this time, but Sheldon wants to find out, so I think we're going to," Amy paused to think of what else she could tell her friends. "I don't know, what else do you want to know?"
Penny perked up with an idea. "We know Halley was conceived on Sheldon's bed and my baby is because I got drunk and asked Leonard, 'do you wanna?' I know the story for your baby, but Bernie hasn't heard it. Oooh, you never told me Sheldon's reaction to when you said you wanted to have another baby."
"Max left the Nobel reception early with Penny. By the time we got to the hotel, he was asleep in Leonard and Penny's room. Leonard suggested he stay there, rather than waking him up. Sheldon and I went back to our room and celebrated winning the Nobel Prize. It was Sheldon's idea to try having a baby. I had been thinking about it, but wanted to wait until after the Nobel stuff died down a little to mention it to him. He brought it up when we learned we won. We decided we weren't going to really try to have a baby, but we also weren't not going to try. If it happened, great, but we agreed that we wouldn't get serious about it until after the New Year. It was about a week after New Year's that I went to the doctor because I was feeling way more run down than usual, that was when I found out I was pregnant."
Bernadette squealed, "That's so cute. You're having a little Nobel baby."
