Chapter 31: Remorse, Reunion, and a New Beginning

Will Sheldon and Niki kiss and make up or are there more fireworks ahead for them?

Not wanting nor willing to wait for the elevator, our two heroines flew up the stairs of the apartment complex to the fourth floor, and whether because of physical exertion or excitement, by the time they were standing outside the door of Sheldon and Leonard's apartment, both women's cheeks were flushed and their breathing was rapid.

Penny leaned against the wall and advised Niki, "Okay, okay, let's get ourselves collected here. We don't want to look like a couple of wild women when we go inside."

Niki stopped her panting for a second to reply with a hint of snark, "Speak for yourself, I'm a bit overdue for some wild woman action, myself."

The pretty blonde's eyes crinkled up and she replied with a giggle in her voice, "Easy girl. One step at a time. First, you two have to make peace and discuss this whole situation. Then, you can get as wild as you want."

"Right as usual, girlfriend. I just don't know how to break the ice."

Penny shook her head in disbelief and sounded off, "Girl, you've known Sheldon Cooper for over three years now and you've been intimate with him countless times, once almost in front of his mother. And now you're telling me you don't know how to break the ice with him? Come on, you two have been married just about two years now and have a daughter together. How much of a stranger can you be to each other? Nik, I'm not letting you run again, I used to do that with Leonard and it almost cost me the best man I ever met. I don't want that to happen with you guys. Let's just go inside and I'll take Leonard into his room and leave you and Sheldon to talk. Remember, conversation comes before sex in the dictionary."

Niki shot back with, "Well, using that analogy, coitus comes before conversation, so there."

Penny chuckled and advised her friend, "Sweetie, you have a brain that's rivaled only by the one of that genius husband of yours, so use it. Talk first, make up sex, later."

"You're right. I just hope neither of us says or does something stupid again."

Penny finally moved from leaning on the wall, smiled over at Niki and said, "Well, knowing the two of you, there's every possibility of that. But you still have to talk about this, okay?"

Niki nodded and also moved away from the wall and towards Sheldon and Leonard's place as she replied, "Okay. I get it."

With that, Penny opened the door and the two women entered the apartment. Sheldon looked up at his wife from the couch and she looked over at him from the doorway. Suddenly, they both bolted towards each other and wordlessly held each other tight.

"I'm so sorry!" they both eventually said in unison, as Leonard and Penny took that as their cue to quietly creep down the hall towards his bedroom.

Before things went any further physically, Niki remembered Penny's wise advice and gently broke her embrace with Sheldon, telling him, "Before we do anything else, I believe we should sit down and really talk to each other, as well as truly listen."

Her husband saw the wisdom in her statement, nodded, and took her hand, "Very well. Let's go over to the couch."

Once seated on the couch, Niki took her husband's hand and began to speak from her heart, "Sheldon, contrary to my outburst earlier today, I love and respect you very much and want us to be able to communicate with each other in a healthier manner. That way, there is a better chance that we will truly understand each other. We don't always have to agree with what the other person is saying, but we do have to listen and try to understand where they are coming from. This has to work both ways. I must keep quiet and listen to you until you are finished speaking and vice versa."

Sheldon's face held a look of concern as his grip on her hand grew a bit firmer, "But what if we don't understand the other person's viewpoint?"

Niki's mouth twisted into an amused grin as she explained to him, "Then we ask for clarification. Sheldon, we're both highly intelligent people. I don't think that understanding each other will be that big a problem."

He nodded and shifted his body closer to her, "Okay. I agree not to insult you or make you feel small ever again. And if by some chance I start to do that, please let me know."

"Of course, Sheldon."

He added in a somewhat hesitant voice, "One more thing, don't ever turn into the Hulk again. Well, you didn't turn big and green or anything, but you get what I'm saying."

Niki lowered her head as she responded to that, ashamed of her actions towards him, "I'm truly sorry about that, Sheldon. I know I must have hurt you very badly when I did that."

His eyes went wide in surprise and he pulled away from her hastily, "Hurt me? No. Niki, you scared me to death!"

A slight grin appeared on Niki's face as she asked him, "What, you thought I'd smash you or something?"

Sheldon moved back closer to his wife, put his arms around her, and kissed the top of her head, "No…I thought you'd leave me forever. I would much rather be smashed into a thousand tiny pieces than lose you."

There were tears in Niki's eyes and she snuggled closer to him and laid her head on his shoulder, "Awww…you'll never lose me, Schatze. Never. But, just the same, you have to promise to talk to me about your feelings. I promise you I'll listen and not go off on you. This whole situation could have been avoided if we'd both done that. I love you, I don't want to be the cause of your pain ever again."

"And I love you. Niki, hurting you was really the last thing I intended to do. I think I wanted you to see how much I was hurting, how lonely I was, so you could make it all better. I guess I didn't convey that message very well, did I?"

Niki looked up at her husband and kissed his cheek as she confessed, "And I was completely overwhelmed with everything and really missing you as well. I wasn't exactly lonely, but I came to the realization that Sheldon Cooper is really the heartbeat of both our little family and Pentagram and that both institutions just don't run nearly as well without him. I guess I was too proud to tell you that."

Sheldon had a confession of his own, "Niki, we're a team and I think it's high time we started acting like one. Let's have talks like this more often and do our best to keep our marriage and our business on track. Oh, by the way, I truly regret my comments about your researching skills. They are second to none. The data you sent me? Outstanding. And to think, you did all that amazing research without me. You are right about something, as much as I don't want to admit it, there is more than one genius in our household and facility and I'm looking right at her."

"Thank you, Sheldon. I know how difficult that must have been to say. But that has its upside. Consider the two of us together. Why, we can do anything we set our minds to!", Niki smiled broadly and declared with more than a hint of pride.

Sheldon pulled his wife even closer to him and kissed her with an intensity and passion that Niki hadn't felt in months. When finished, he pulled back and gave her an intense look, "I agree. Now, would part of 'anything' include going into my bedroom and making mad, torrid, love to each other?"

"Cooper, I thought you'd never ask."

As they entered the bedroom, Niki playfully inquired, "Sheldon, do you remember the first time we made love?'

Sheldon started off feeling the need to reiterate the fact of his eidetic memory to her when he suddenly caught on to her meaning and a seductive look came into his eyes, "What a silly question…oh wait, you are using that as a form of romantic foreplay. All right, yes, I remember it like it was yesterday. After our dinner together, you began to remove your clothing as you walked towards the shower. I do believe you also issued an invitation for me to join you."

Niki gave him a wicked grin and responded with, "That I did. Would you like to do a bit of recreating that scene?"

Sheldon walked over to his wife and began to nuzzle her neck, "Well, why don't you issue said invitation and find out?"

"Alright, here goes." With that, Niki began to walk towards the bathroom, once again removing an article of her clothing with every step she took. As on that long-ago evening, she called out over her shoulder seductively, "Care to join me?"

All her husband's senses were aroused, as she had fully intended them to be. After they had both removed the other's clothes, they stepped into the shower and, as before, began sensuously soaping each other's body. Soon, their excitement overtook them and they rinsed off any soap, exited the shower and headed for the bed, continuing their exploration of each other's bodies as they walked. By the time they had reached their destination, they were both more than ready to ramp up the intensity. Sheldon's hands, lips, and tongue thoroughly explored every erogenous zone of his lover's body. After he had left her shaking and satisfied, Niki returned the favor and explored Sheldon in a similar manner. When she was finished, she had left her husband incapable of speaking for a bit of time as he caught his breath.

Niki reached for Sheldon's hand and gave it loving squeeze, "I see our coital skills have not eroded over time, have they, Schatze?"

Her husband rolled over onto his side, propped himself up on one elbow, and stated matter-of-factly, "I do believe sexual prowess is like solving an algebraic equation using the quadratic formula. Once you learn how, it is a skill you never lose."

Niki pulled Sheldon down on top of her and gave him a quick kiss before stating, "That is a unique take on the situation, but considering the mouth it came out of, I will take it as an extreme compliment."

One of his hands began to slowly stroke his wife's hair, "Of the highest order, Freckles. Of the highest order. Do you realize the depth and breadth of my feelings for you?"

"I'm getting a good idea of it, but maybe you should show me again."

Sheldon returned to lying on his back, grinning at her suggestion, "In time, Dr. Horner, in time. I am not as young as I used to be. Perhaps we need to sit back and talk a bit before we undertake another round of coitus."

"I have no problem with that. In fact, there is something I really need to tell you."

He sensed the seriousness of Niki's tone, sat up and attempted to lighten her mood, "What is it? That you adore the perfection that is your husband?"

Niki also pulled herself into a sitting position and, once again, took one of his hands in one of hers, "Stop it, Sheldon. You know I do, the adoring part I mean. It's the perfection part that I'm having some difficulty wrapping my mind around." Noting the teasing look on his face, she continued in the same vein, "But you come close, very close. With a little fine tuning, you may yet achieve that goal."

They both began to laugh and turned back on their sides and wrapped their arms around each other, sharing an intimate moment that had nothing to do with carnal endeavors.

Niki eventually pulled away from Sheldon and whispered to both him and herself, "There is something I must tell you, though, Cooper." Seeing the alarm on his face, she quickly reassured him, "Don't worry, it's nothing bad. At least I think it isn't."

Her husband gave her a worried look and sat back up in the bed, "Well, I suggest you tell me and let me be the judge."

Niki blinked, took a deep breath, and began to speak, "Okay, here goes… "

Suddenly, Sheldon's phone began to play Darth Vader's theme from Star Wars, signaling that he had an incoming call. He reached over to the nightstand, picked up his phone and answered it, "Hello? Oh, it's you, Leonard. Why are you calling at this hour? Yes, we're fine. But couldn't that question have waited until the morning? The last time I heard your voice, it was while Niki and I were in the living room. Really, Leonard, you and Penny could have waited for us to leave the room before initiating coitus of such volume. The sounds emanating from your room brought back some old memories I'd thought I'd forever left behind me. Excuse me? What? You're not joking, are you? Okay, Niki and I will meet you in the living room in five minutes. This is indeed news I believe I should share with her. Goodbye.

Niki looked over at him, curiosity filling her head, "What was that all about?"

"Come with me, Niki, and you will soon find out." With that, Sheldon bounded out of bed, grabbing his robe as he did, any unspoken announcement from his wife far from his mind. Seeing as how the moment was lost, Niki left the bed herself, put on her own robe, and followed Sheldon out to the living room.

Well, our couple has made up just fine, but what did Leonard tell his friend and why is Sheldon in such a hurry to share it with his wife? And what was Niki about to tell him?