A/N Thank you as always for your reviews. They do keep me going. I still don't own these characters.
Pulling themselves together, the three of them got to their feet. Penny got the attention of one of the Troopers, "Could it be possible for someone to get my purse and luggage out of the trunk of the car? It's an overnight bag with black straps."
The Trooper nodded and decided before he would search the body he would see if he could get the trunk open. He found the car was unlocked and he was able to open the trunk from inside.
As he brought them to her, receiving a big thank you, an ambulance pulled into the yard.
Penny watched as the medics hurried inside and after working on Leonard for a short time, put him on a gurney and headed back out.
When Penny asked if she could ride with him to the hospital, they quickly agreed. When she asked if Sheldon could join her, a trooper spoke up and said he could ride with them.
They also asked Kurt but he told them someone needed to pick up their car. Harding and Rachel told him they were going back to Pasadena and would drop him off. He told Penny he could take her overnight bag.
The remaining troopers said they would wait for the Coroner.
Kurt asked if there was anywhere near the hospital where he could get some rooms. They told him there was a Super 8 about a mile from the hospital on County Road 12. Getting directions, he went with Harding and Rachel to their car.
The ambulance sped away, its siren blaring as the police car bearing Sheldon followed behind.
As they drove back toward Moorpark, Rachel turned back toward Kurt, "How are you doing, Kurt?"
"I'm okay."
She hesitated, "I hope I am not being too personal, but I just want you to know I do have an idea of what you are going through. I once had to kill someone." She paused, "He was only seventeen years old." She paused again, "If you ever need someone to talk to, I would be glad to listen." She handed him her card.
Taking it, Kurt caught her eyes, "Thank you. I may take you up on that. For now, I just need to try to get my head around what happened."
She smiled, "I understand. But remember, you saved Penny's life."
Kurt nodded and they drove the rest of the way in silence.
When they got to the car, which was thankfully still in one piece, Kurt told them good night. Harding told him they would be in contact with the State Police the next day. He also told him there would need to be a Coroner's Inquest but that he shouldn't have to worry.
As Kurt headed back toward the motel, he found himself thinking of Cheryl at the bar and other times they had been together. Those images were then overlaid by him seeing the bullet hitting her and the look on her face as she crashed to the floor. But then he was able to cover that all with a picture of Penny, smiling and happy.
He sighed; it was apparent it would take some time to try to put what happened behind him. He suspected it might never all go away.
When he arrived at the motel, he was gratified to find he was able to rent two rooms. Wishing he had a change of clothes; he did decide to take a shower before heading over to the hospital. He found himself thinking of all that had happened since Sheldon and Leonard had come to his door. He had to smirk, who would have ever believed he would have them for friends.
As he got dressed, he realized how close he felt to Leonard. For the first time, he found himself realizing what a hole losing Leonard would cause in his life. No, he couldn't think that way, Leonard would be fine. He smiled when he remembered how Penny has said she loved Leonard. He realized it was a little strange how he had pulled for them to get together from the start.
Now anxious to see how Penny and Sheldon were holding up, he headed out to the car. As he drove toward the hospital, he remembered what Rachel had said. It also occurred to him that she really was attractive. Wondering where that came from, he concentrated on his driving.
As Penny sat in the ambulance watching them work on Leonard, she realized how much he meant to her. She couldn't imagine losing him. She quickly berated herself, 'Don't even think that, he is going to be fine'.
She looked at him. He seemed so frail, so small, with all the tubes hooked up to him. It seemed forever, but was actually less than twenty minutes when they arrived at the hospital. Penny scrambled to get out of the way as they quickly transferred him to another gurney and raced off with him.
Penny stood quietly, a little lost until she felt Sheldon come up next to her. He awkwardly touched her arm, "I suppose we should go inside."
Penny smiled at him and nodded. They made their way to the waiting room. Being informed Leonard was being taken to surgery, they sat down, Penny struggling to stay calm as Sheldon filled out the required paperwork.
Finally, to pass the time, Penny got herself some coffee and a water for Sheldon. Since they had sat down, they had mostly passed the time in silence, each grateful the other was there.
They hadn't realized how much time had passed until they saw Kurt enter the room and head over to sit next to Penny.
Anticipating him, she said, "He is still in surgery. Not sure how long it will be."
Kurt nodded and sat back. After a few moments, he said, "I got two rooms at that motel. I thought we would want to be close by."
Both Penny and Sheldon nodded. After a time, Penny spoke up, "How about you, Kurt? How are you doing?" She paused and then added, "I never did really thank you for what you did. I feel bad about Cheryl but you saved my life."
Kurt reached out and took her hand, "Thanks, Penny. I'm all right. I am just glad you are all right."
Penny smiled, "Sometime you will have to tell us how you found us so fast."
Sheldon interrupted, "We will tell you and Leonard the whole story." He smiled, "I think you will be impressed."
Penny managed a smile, "I am sure we will." She hesitated, "And I will tell you about how amazing Leonard was."
Speaking of Leonard caused everyone to again be lost in their own thoughts.
Finally, it all caught up with Penny and she fell asleep leaning against Kurt. He looked down at her and he realized how much he cared for her. It had not worked out romantically between them but he was a little surprised how much he wanted her to be happy.
When Penny awoke, she was ashamed for falling asleep but Kurt assured her it was understandable. Penny realized how glad she was that she and Kurt had found a way to be together. She realized that Leonard was responsible. She started to tear up a little as she thought again of how much he meant to her.
She was interrupted in her thoughts when a doctor dressed in scrubs entered the room, "Is there anyone here for Leonard Hofstadter?"
When they all stood up, he had to smile. It was apparent he had a wide variety of friends. He was a little ashamed of himself when he felt a little surprise when the beautiful girl anxiously asked about Leonard. It was apparent she felt something for him.
He smiled, "The surgery went well. The wound itself was not too severe. It missed any major organs. Our main concern was the loss of blood, but we were able to get it under control. There is no reason he should not make a full recovery."
As he heard then thank him profusely and watched them hug each other excitedly, he smiled broader.
When they recovered slightly, he told them he had contacted the police and told them Leonard would probably not be awake and lucid until later the next morning.
Telling them they would be able to see him then, he suggested they leave their number with the night nurse and return the next day.
After once more receiving their thanks, he told them he would stop by in the morning.
Although they hated to leave, they finally decided there was no reason to stay and after giving Penny's number to the nurse, they left for the motel.
It was a little of a mixed blessing when it appeared to Kurt and Penny that Sheldon had recovered enough to complain. He wondered why they couldn't go home and get some clean clothes and other necessities.
Finally, Penny had enough and told him she was way too tired to go all the way back to Pasadena and they needed to be close to the hospital in case something happened.
That seemed to remind Sheldon that Leonard was still in the hospital and he knew what could happen there.
It seemed like he was going to say something when he discovered he did not have a room of his own, but wisely decided that in this case discretion was the better part of valor. He realized they were all still struggling with all that had happened.
The next morning they were all at the hospital. They were pleasantly surprised to see Detectives Harding and Reynolds were there as well.
Leonard awoke. Immediately he sensed that something was wrong, something was different. As his eyes came into focus, he realized he was in a hospital room. Suddenly, it all came back to him, him rushing at Cheryl, the pain and… Oh, my God, Penny! He felt himself tearing up, Penny. He had failed her. The realization she was gone hit him. He suddenly couldn't breathe. Desperately, he hit the nurse's button.
As she rushed in, she quickly saw what was happening and used an inhaler until he started to breathe normally again. Saying she would get the doctor, she left.
Leonard struggled to fight the despair. How had he gotten here? Did Cheryl bring him? She said she didn't want to kill him. Did the others know? Just as he lost it and began to cry, sobbing uncontrollably, the Doctor entered.
The Doctor hurried over to him and tried to get him to settle down, but then turned to the nurse and had her administer a sedative as the Doctor managed to stop him from thrashing about.
After Leonard had relaxed, the Doctor wondered what could have brought this on. He asked the nurse but she couldn't offer an explanation.
He finally decided to talk to the others and see if they could shed any light on the subject.
When he reached the waiting room, everyone stood up expectantly. Penny quickly asked, "Is he alright? Is he awake? Can we see him?"
The Doctor signaled for them all to sit down. Sitting down himself, "Yes, he woke up, but he then became very agitated and I had to sedate him again so he wouldn't harm himself."
He turned to them, "Do any of you have any idea what could have caused this? He was saying something about having failed."
They all looked at him, obviously bothered by what he said and wondering what could have caused it.
Then suddenly, Penny put her hand over her mouth, "Oh, my God. It's me. He thinks I'm dead."
With the Doctor looking inquisitively at her, she quickly explained how he had risked his life but was unconscious when Penny had been saved. Tearing up, she quickly said, "I have to see him. To let him know I am alive, that he saved my life."
As Kurt moved over and put his arm on her shoulder, the Doctor said, "The sedation will last for about an hour. I am going to check his vitals, but when I am done, you can stay and wait for him to wake up."
Penny smiled, "Oh, thank you, Doctor."
Harding spoke up, "Miss Andrews, after you two have spent some time together, don't forget I need to talk with him."
Penny stood up, "I understand."
She then followed the Doctor out the door.