Author's Note: Hello, everyone. A few days ago I watched a YouTube video on the ShAmy breakup that compelled me to write this fic. Originally, it was going to be a one-shot, but the writeup turned out to be longer than I'd originally intended.

Disclaimer: The characters in this story do not belong to me.


Amy sighed, watching the skyline darkening as the winter sun drifted away into the night. The walls of the empty house screamed in a language she did not understand, murmured to her the words she had left behind, never to walk in the same lane again. Except she was doing it again. She poured herself a glass of wine and prepared to go to sleep, but in complete vain. After an hour of futile attempt of falling asleep, she tried to watch TV to get her mind off of what she'd witnesses this afternoon. She looked up some music, some text messages with her colleagues and friends, the conversations that didn't last long.

At last she dialed the familiar number. Dave, it read in her contact list. Dave was her ex-husband and they'd been divorced for a year, however, their relationship was still cordial, no matter how distant they grew. There had been no bitterness before they split up, no hard feelings. If anything, Dave offered his help any moment she needed him. She was grateful to him. Like all the time, he'd been there to help her, and support her. That didn't help how she felt about Dave. He was a good man that deserved happiness. Because of her, his second marriage had resulted in disaster and she'd been unable to help things, unable to help herself.

Amy felt a tinge of guilt run through as the bell rang. She made her mind to disconnect the call but her call was answered immediately.

"Hey!" his voice was unsteady and low. Was he with someone and she'd disturbed him? If that was the case, he wouldn't have answered her phone.

"Hi, Dave. I – uh – " Amy hated herself for the lack of things to say. Today, she needed a friend to talk to, and one common thread had tied them both. Sheldon. Dave was Sheldon's huge fan and Amy.. Well, she'd loved him. Still did.

"Are you alright, Amy?" Concern coloured his words.

She nodded her head even though he couldn't see her face. "Yes, I'm okay." She was unconvincing and Amy knew it.

"What's wrong?"

"You saw the Nobel Prize Ceremony, didn't you?" she asked in a quivering voice.

Amy felt tension thicken as Dave let her question hang in the air without muttering any other word. "Yes, I did," he said after some time. He was not bitter. He hid his disappointment well, but Amy had learned to read things from his perspective even if he didn't realize it himself. "Amy, I can understand how you're feeling."

"Thank you." She choked, unable to form any more words. "I — I just wonder. I feel like I made a huge mistake. If you know what I mean."

"I understand, Amy."

Dave's words weren't comforting but Amy didn't feel she'd been looking for any sort of comfort either. Five years, she'd been so convinced of Sheldon not loving her; of not loving her enough for her to be in the relationship with him. So, she'd sought her way out, breaking up with him. An act that started with her wanting some time for herself but deciding things would rather remain the way they were currently as she saw no change in his behavior. It had worsened over time. He had disregarded her needs, her emotions, and no matter how much she tried to see things from his perspective, at one point she'd reached her dead-end.

Their friends stood beside her for support. Raj, Howard, Bernadette, Penny, and Leonard had extended their support for her. She was grateful to them for sticking with her. For a girl that hadn't had friends in her life, these people were the angels she could have asked from the Almighty himself. Sheldon's name was never brought up in fear of making things awkward for her.

"He's holding up well," Penny would say whenever she asked about him. Deep down, Amy wanted to know if he'd been missing her as well the way she did. Whenever they came face to face, an awkward silence ensued between them. Sheldon used to be quieter than she'd ever seen him, but she wished he spoke a little more. She wanted to know if he, too, loved her as much as she did. He'd loved her, Amy knew, but it wasn't enough to sustain their relationship. She'd been patient for years and years until she'd reached her inevitable breaking point.

Eventually, his silence and indifference killed what little hopes she had. Bidding goodbye to her friends, she'd left for New Jersey, a place far away from Sheldon. He hadn't been here and he hated the place anyway. She'd been seeing Dave and when she told him of her decision, he'd stood in support with her. Dave, too, decided to move to New Jersey if she needed his help. A few months later, he was with her. They'd dated for 2 years before deciding it was time to settle down.

Life had become easier. Amy wasn't sure if easy was what she wanted, but it felt nice to know she didn't have to struggle every day for attention of the man who loved her. She didn't love Dave the way she'd loved Sheldon, and they both knew it. But she was willing to give life another shot, a new chance at happiness, even though she hadn't dreamt of this life. At times, she worried about Sheldon, but quietened herself at his friends comforting him. Those were the people who stood by her side, remained with her like family; they would definitely have supported Sheldon. Despite her convincing herself, Amy couldn't silence the nagging feeling that she was doing something wrong. That was what led to her divorce with Dave. He was a good man. He'd understood her reasons and let her be.

"I do really like you, Amy, but if this is what you want, I'm okay with it." He'd walked out of her life like a gentleman. She might not have loved him in the way he deserved, but Amy respected him. He deserved uncompromised love of someone who was made for him, someone who didn't drop love to him in crumbs and tiny pieces.

Despite wanting to contact Sheldon, she'd been unable to do so. She hadn't talked to Penny and Leonard in years. The last time she knew, Bernadette was pregnant. It felt awkward to suddenly call and ask them about her ex-boyfriend, who himself might have married and was perhaps happy.

Amy spent her days amidst confusions and questions, wondering to herself if she'd made the right decisions in the last few years. To her, no answers came.

All she knew was that she had perhaps lost Sheldon forever.

That was until a few hours ago when she heard the live telecast of the Nobel Prize Ceremony. She was amazed but not truly surprised to see Sheldon's name. Hearing his voice for the first time in years, she broke down. All of his friends were invited. Penny, Leonard, Raj, Howard, and Bernadette were all there. She wondered if she could be there with them, sitting beside them, celebrating victory of the man she'd loved. She couldn't help but feel left out until she heard her name. Her name in his voice.. Amy had forgotten how it made her feel; how she felt like a teenage girl with rushing butterflies in her belly. Perhaps it was the crack in his voice as he spoke her name that startled her.

"Amy, wherever you are, I just want you to know that you will always be the reason I am what I am today. Thank you for teaching me the lessons in life I needed to know. Thank you for being the part of my life." He glanced at the crowd and she knew he was looking at his friends, and Sheldon continued. "In my own way, I love you all." It comforted her to know he acknowledged her presence in his life. For some reason, Amy couldn't help but notice how the child-like look she'd seen on his face had been replaced with something else. She didn't know what to name it, what to make of it, if at all, but Sheldon had changed.

In the spur of the moment, she decided she needed to go back to him. It was going to be a long journey, but she was going home.