Chapter 9: Matter

Sheldon continues to belittle Niki, and she finally has enough of it.

Sheldon and Leonard returned to their apartment just as night was falling and Sheldon took the already delivered breakfast supplies and began to cook up a batch of scrambled eggs, hash browns, sausage, and toast for himself and his friend. As he was about to plate the food, he turned Leonard and asked, "Would you prefer white or wheat toast? I made some of both kinds."

Leonard looked up from his computer and responded in a weary voice, "It doesn't matter, Sheldon. How about wheat? Does that make you happy?"

Sheldon threw his friend an annoyed look and told him, "You needn't snap at me. I merely asked you a simple question."

"Sorry, buddy. I guess it's just been a long day and you haven't been in the best of moods."

The taller man countered that statement with, "I haven't been in the worst of moods, either, Leonard. You've seen me in a worse mood many times."

Leonard watch Sheldon arrange the plates of food and admitted the truth of his friend's reply with a tired, "That's true, but still…you weren't Mr. Sunshine today and it got a little old. What's bugging you, anyway?" he added as he went to take his plate to the counter.

Sheldon set his own plate down and sighed in frustration as he answered, "As I've told you before, nothing is 'bugging' me. I am merely getting used to the time change. Plus, you know how I hate to lecture. The specter of that has been haunting me since we have arrived."

"If you hate to lecture, why did you agree to come here?"

Sheldon got them both a bottle of water from the refrigerator and informed his friend, "As Niki so correctly informed me before we left, it is good advertising for our paper. The idea of another Nobel Prize or any other award we may receive is intriguing to me. In addition, I, for one, would enjoy seeing you being rewarded for all the hard work you put in on this paper. It's been many years in the making and I think you deserve a great deal of praise for it."

Leonard took the offered bottle from his friend and gave him a wry smile, "And another award for you just sweetens the pot, doesn't it?"

Sheldon rolled his eyes in exasperation. He was upset that his friend thought him that selfish. He took a seat next to the smaller man explained, "Oh, Leonard. You know that is true. But if it was just for me I wouldn't have come here. Do you think I enjoy being away from my family?"

Leonard shook his head and admitted in a kind voice, "No, I know you don't. But we'll be going home in a few weeks and then everything will be back to normal." He then added in a much sharper tone, "That is, if you don't completely alienate Niki."

Sheldon's eyes narrowed suspiciously and he asked, "Why would Niki feel alienated?"

"You haven't exactly been warm and fuzzy with her, have you?"

Sheldon went quiet for a moment and then replied in an almost wistful voice, "Most likely not, but Niki should have no doubt just how much she means to me. Goodness knows I've told her often enough how much I love her."

Leonard look over at his friend before he began to eat and pleaded with him, "Well try to at least be civil to her tonight, okay?"

"Very well. I know I have not been very pleasant to speak with from her end. I will truly attempt to keep that in mind when I talk to her tonight." Sheldon then pointed to their plates and commanded, "Now, let's eat before all my hard work grows cold."

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Back in Altadena, Penny and Niki were anxiously awaiting the time for contacting their husbands.

Niki sat down on the couch in her living room and began to think out loud, "I know they said to call them later than usual because of their day trip, but how much later? We usually speak to them at noon. Are we supposed to call them at one? Two. When?"

Penny threw the woman next to her a sweet smile, "Relax, girlfriend. Leonard said they thought about that and would be the ones making the first contact. So, we just have to sit here and wait."

Niki's response was a curt, "Like good little Stepford wives."

"Niki, please stop that. Don't let Sheldon's attitude poison yours. We're just accommodating their schedule. We usually talk at a time we've all worked out. Nobody has ordered us to do this. Now remember what I told you, ASK him what the hell is going on, but in a nice way."

Niki sighed and got up from the couch and went into the kitchen, "Of course. I'll never get any sort of answer whatsoever if I'm nasty to him. I know that much. I'll be as nice as I can possibly be. But if he starts his rude shit again, as nice as I can be won't be very nice at all."

Penny followed her friend and attempted to reason with her, "See? You're already making plans for if he's an asshat. He very well may not be. Just give the poor guy a chance, okay?"

Niki grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator and headed back to the couch, "Okay. I guess you're right. It's just this waiting that is killing me. I'd like to know when we should wake the kids up from their naps, too."

Penny plopped down on the couch and picked up a magazine sitting there, which she pretended to read. She finally told Niki, "Me, too. But we have to be patient. It's almost two o'clock. Sheldon should be Skyping you any minute now. Leonard and I have agreed to talk on the phone this time. What do you say we wake up the kids so they'll look human when they talk to their dads?"

Niki wailed, "Ahhh, you guys are just talking on the phone? That means that Lori won't be able to talk to Unca Leonard. She was looking forward to that so much!"

Penny gave a girlish giggle and replied, "Well, I'll just tell Leonard to pop into Sheldon's room and videobomb your conversation. That might even lighten the mood a bit."

Niki rolled her eyes and said, "One can only hope. But now, let's go get the kids up."

"Good idea. I want both kids fully awake when they talk to their dads. I wonder if Blake would like to talk to Sheldon? I mean, Lori wants to talk to Leonard because she misses him. We kinda forgot that both of them see Uncle Sheldon and Uncle Leonard almost as often as they do their own fathers. We're not the only ones who miss the buggers."

Niki grinned at her friend, "Yep. I know Lori thinks of Leonard as almost a second father. It's only natural she would miss him, too. I suppose the same goes for Blake."

Penny eagerly replied in a happy voice, "Let's go wake them both up. I know that Blake can be a real grump when he first wakes up. I think he gets that from me."

"Lori is always an early riser and she is bright-eyed and bushy tailed the second she opens her eyes. I know she gets that from Sheldon 'cause she sure didn't get it from me. I'm not even remotely human until I'm on my second cup of coffee."

The two women went into the nursery and woke up both children. Blake, as Penny expected, was out of sorts for a little while. Lori, on the other hand, was cheery and chirpy immediately upon being awakened.

"Hey, sweeties," Penny crooned to them, "let's go into the living room. It's almost time for your dads to be calling.

"DaDa!" Lori squealed in delight, racing past both mothers and out into the living room.

"Daddy? Okay." Blake sleepily responded as he reluctantly left the spare bed Niki had set up for him and padded over to his mother, who promptly scooped him up and carried him to the living room.

As they walked out of the nursery, Penny reminded Niki, "Remember, don't let Sheldon pull any of his foolishness. You might even let him talk to Lori first, to kind of let him get his happy on. It might help."

Niki stopped and stared at her friend, "You just might have something there, girlfriend. Thanks for the idea."

Twenty minutes later, Niki's computer let her know she had a Skype call coming in, while Penny's phone gave a cheerful ring. Both women sat at opposite ends of the living room and answered their respective calls.

While Penny and Leonard shared a few laughs while he shared the adventures of his day with her, Niki hurried to inform Sheldon that his daughter wanted to talk with him first. Sheldon's eyes grew bright and crinkled up at the corners as he smiled happily and told his wife, "That's most agreeable to me. Let me talk to my little Princess and then I'll get to you."

Niki frowned at his apparent dismissal of her, but managed a smile and sat Lori on the couch in front of the laptop on the coffee table. "Lori," she told her daughter, "here's your DaDa. Can you be a good girl and show him how you can sit there by yourself?"

"Yes, Mommy." the little girl answered in a very serious tone, and then greeted her father with a giggly, "Hi DaDa!"

Sheldon's grin was wide and sincere as he responded to his daughter's greeting, "Good afternoon, Princess. Have you had a nice day today?"

"Me and Bwake went to the park wif Mommy an' Aunt Penny."

"I see. Did you have fun?"

The little girl could barely contain her excitement, "Yes! We had a picnic and went onna swings!"

Sheldon nodded thoughtfully and replied, "That does sound like fun!" Then his eyes narrowed and he asked her, "Did Mommy send her work to me like she said she would?"

Niki immediately lifted Lori off the couch and placed her on the floor with some toys. She then put herself in full view of Sheldon and spat out, "Cooper, that is NOT a question you should be asking our daughter! She's not even two yet. Why put her in the middle of our work?"

"Or lack thereof. Did you send me some research results or not?"

Niki's eyes went molten and she answered him using an angry tone, "You haven't checked your email? I must have scanned and sent you about thirty pages worth of work."

Sheldon snapped back at her, "Is it quality work?"

Niki's voice became dangerously calm as she inquired, "Sheldon Cooper, are you questioning my ability to do scientific research? Because if you are, just remember there were three Nobel prizes awarded to our facility, and my name was on one of them."

He thought a moment, fidgeted a bit in his seat and answered her with, "Perhaps I misspoke. For that, I apologize. But I am not there to oversee things, so you may have gotten a bit lax with your research methods."

Niki exploded, "A BIT LAX? Sheldon Cooper, be very glad you are on another continent, because I have the overwhelming urge to deck you right now!"

Sheldon dismissed her anger with a wave of his hand and told her, "Niki, I meant no disrespect. It is just that you have Lori, the house, and the business to take care of and it may be a bit taxing for you. I would understand if your work product dropped in quality. After all, I am not there to supervise it."

Niki thought about her past employment, as a tenured professor at one of the top collegiate science centers in the country and as the supervisor of the largest telescope on Mount Wilson, and her blood began to boil. She was every bit as capable a researcher and scientist as Sheldon and he knew it! How dare he treat her as an incompetent! She gathered her wits about her and informed her husband, "If you cared to check my findings, you would find them quite astute and thorough…and that IS with running the business, the household, and taking care of our daughter! Sheldon, I have to ask you, considering your actions towards me of late, do I even matter to you anymore?"

Sheldon looked slightly amused as he responded, "Niki, of course you matter. And if you begin to move at the speed of light squared, you would energy. Very, very, much." He then gave her one of his odd little laughs.

Niki's response was quick and simple. She gave her husband an icy glare and closed her laptop.

On his end, Sheldon saw the screen go blank and stared at it open-mouthed for several moments, and then his laptop was shut as well. Leonard, who had come into the room to chat with Lori came up behind his friend and asked, "What the hell did you say that for? That was just mean and spiteful!"

Sheldon stood up and addressed his friend, his annoyance clearly punctuating every word he spoke, "Leonard, I have neither the time nor the inclination to cater to the insecurities of my wife. I am here to work and that is where my focus has been. It has not been, nor is it currently, focused on pandering to Niki's injured feelings."

Leonard shook his head sadly and told him, "You know something, buddy?"

Sheldon shot back at him with an irritated tone in his voice, "What, Leonard?"

"I have a hunch you're not going to have Niki or her feelings to worry about for a long, long, time." With that, Leonard Hofstadter abruptly turned and left the living room and, once again, Sheldon Cooper was left staring at an empty space with an open mouth.

I do believe Dr. Cooper has put his foot fairly far into his mouth this time. Will he apologize to Niki or is this a major bump in the marital road for them?