Chapter 7

Thanks again to ShAmy4evr for as always!

A plot moving chapter, but things will be heating up.

The next morning, Amy showed up at Sheldon's apartment at 7:55. She had figured that 35 minutes would be enough time for tea and turnovers. Sheldon opened the door and frowned as he looked at his watch. For a moment she was worried that she had arrived too early, but the opposite was in fact the case.

"Hello, Amy. I thought you might have come earlier." Sheldon had spent most of the night cleaning his house again for Amy's visit. He had to get rid of the books he used to trick her in case she saw that they did not relate to alternate dimensions and M theory, and that took most of the evening. He expected her around dawn, or he hoped anyway.

"Oh, forgive me, I should have set up a time. I wanted to finish this off for you." She handed Sheldon a box with pastries and a big grin. The scent of fresh baked pastries, some kind of sweet berries and browned sugar filled his senses. Not since his Meemaw had cooked for him had he smelt a more welcoming aroma. Sheldon quickly forgot the last hour he had been pacing back and forth waiting for her to come.

"Oh, Amy, I'm as hungry as a spring bear, thank you. Come on in." Sheldon took the box of pastries and started to wolf them down before he had realized he hadn't offered her one, or a beverage or even a chair. His manners were sorely lacking from being a hermit for years. With a mouth full of pastry he said, "Um… you want one?"

Amy giggled, "No, I'm good. I had some before I left home, but if you don't mind, I'll start the kettle. I could use a cup."

With a full mouth and mumble he said, "Um… sure…"

Amy went to the kitchen to start the tea. As Sheldon had a kettle ready to go with water waiting, there wasn't much to do. She flipped the stove on, and turned back to Sheldon who by this time had eaten the entire box.

"Oh my, you do have a sweet tooth. Oh, you have some jam on your mouth." Without thinking, Amy reached up to touch Sheldon's mouth which had now gaped open. She lightly ran her thumb down the side of his mouth and around his ridge of his bottom lip little realizing the audience she had. With a blush that matched the raspberry filling, Sheldon closed his mouth and swallowed as she pulled her hand away.

"Um.. Thank you…" Was all Sheldon could verbalize at the moment. He could have kicked himself for eating all the pastries without making her eat one. Then, perhaps he would have had the chance to touch her lips.

So he asked quickly as he tried to overcome his nervousness, "You will have lunch with me again today, won't you Amy?"

"Of course. Though the guys will probably be keen to discuss more sci fi stuff with you as well." Amy gave a forced grin at having to listen to all nonsense again, "However interacting with the small group will be a good experience, and a welcome part of your therapy."

"Oh, but I was hoping we could eat alone again." Though Sheldon was beginning to enjoy his time with the guys, he really wanted to be with Amy.

"Really?" Amy was a little surprised that he wanted to be alone with her so much since the guys seemed to be such a draw for him.

"Sure. I still need to find out what you did in Saudi Arabia. Camels? Damn woman, that is some scary shit!" Sheldon shook his head, and then realized he had used foul language with Amy, but she just took it in her stride.

"Yeah you are right, they can be scary because they are so tall. But it was okay except…camels spit. Faisal, the wealthy donor who sponsored the trip, helped me keep them happy with little treats. I had to say yes to his marriage proposal, though… Do you need some water?" Amy patted his back.

He had almost choked on the coffee he was drinking. This was the first time he had heard of any marriage proposal or engagement. Was he too late in this reality to be with Amy?

Sheldon's voice cracked as he managed to whisper through his gasps, "No… I'm fine…Fine… So you are engaged?"

Amy tapped him on the back and continued her story. "I guess technically, he is my fiancé, but it was just for donations. I haven't heard from him since. I think he's invested in nano tech now."

"GOOD! GREAT! Good field. Great. Good… Okay… it's okay…" Sheldon sat on his computer chair, drew in a few quick breaths and cranked his neck around. He had given himself a charley horse from coughing.

"Boy, you really choked on that coffee. Is your shoulder still bothering you, too?"

"My Shoulder?" Sheldon remembered his lie to get her to come home with him last night, "Right! Leonard and his laser." Sheldon rotated his arm around, "It seems I strained it. It'll be fine… Don't worry." Sheldon tried to rise off the chair, but Amy stopped him.

"Let me try something. But I have to touch you. Is that okay?"

Sheldon let out a chuckle, "Always, as long as you don't tickle me..."

Amy blushed at his remark as she proceeded to angle Sheldon so his back was arched. She pressed on a certain spot, and Sheldon let out a low moan.

"Oh sweet Jesus! Amy.. my god woman… your hands are like magic." Sheldon nearly collapsed from pleasure.

"Just my mastery of the central nervous system, I could just as easily paralyze you."

Sheldon looked back and gulped, but Amy just smirked, "But I won't. Now… how does that feel."

"Like the touch of an angel." Sheldon couldn't remember a time he had ever had a simple touch evoke such a response in him, nor could he recall if he had ever felt that good.

Amy could feel his muscle relax under her touch. His back was as muscular as his arms. She placed her other hand on his broad shoulder. She could feel the heat radiate from his skin through the thin shirt. She drew in a short breath and tried to cool off herself.

The massage session lasted far longer than needed. Sheldon's guttural growls and moans were igniting a fire in Amy's loins. She knew she needed to keep her raging hormones over this man at bay. They were friends. Just friends. But, boy she loved being his friend right now, she thought.

Finally she pulled away and Sheldon let out a whimper.

"Ahhh Amy! Why'd ya stop!?"

Amy tapped her watch, "8:30 Dr. Cooper. Science waits for no one. You don't want to be late for work do you?"

"NO MA'AM!" Sheldon let out a sigh and begrudgingly rose off the chair. "Well, thank you Amy. I feel better than I have in years." He licked his lips and added, "I get them neck pains all the time." Sheldon never got neck pain, but if it would get her to do that with her hands again, he would wear a neck brace for a week.

Amy frowned with concern, "Really? You should get that checked! You might have pulled a muscle."

"Or… You could just… I don't know…" He blinked at her and cocked his head to the side with half grin.

Amy smirked at him and headed toward the door, "We'll see, but too much of a good thing is bad for you."

"Whoever said that was bad fat liar with pants on fire." Sheldon stomped to the door.

He and Amy rode down the elevator and exchanged places with his blond icy neighbor who had just come home wearing the same small black dress, but the thorny rose lipstick was missing. She gave Amy a cold stare. Amy glared back with a fiery gaze that hit the icy blond like a flame thrower. The blond spent the rest of the ride up the elevator admiring her nails.

Amy and Sheldon drove to work, chatting about Carthaginian history and pachyderms. They arrived still chatting before the time forced them to go their separate ways. Their early morning chat went far too quickly for Sheldon, but for Amy, though every second with Sheldon was a joy, she needed some space from him to think. She loved spending time with him and was quickly becoming addicted to his voice. However, she was determined to keep these feelings at bay, convincing herself that she had real no physical attraction to Sheldon other than as a friend.

Amy waited patiently for lunch and as soon as the clock hit 11:55, she headed to Sheldon's office. She was eager to see him again so that they could finish their conversation about Hannibal's elephants and the prudence of watching your rear guard, but it seemed that he was too popular today. Not only was the group of guys all in his office they had also brought lunch. She could hear them discussing some Star show as she approached the door.

"Raj, how can you possibly say with a straight face that Kirk is anyway comparable to Picard? I mean, that's fucking nuts! That's as bad as Leonard with his Babylon 5 shit! ... Oh Amy!" Sheldon popped off his chair as soon as he saw her, hoping she hadn't heard his foul language, again.

He had been so engrossed in his conversation with the guys that he had forgotten to tell them he had plans for lunch. Mentally Sheldon blamed Leonard, who had brought up the merits of Babylon 5 again which Sheldon just could not let go.

Amy shifted slightly as she looked at Sheldon's shocked face. Though Amy had looked forward to their lunch conversation, she could tell he was conflicted, so she decided to help him.

"Sheldon, forgive me, but I cannot make our lunch date… I mean appointment. Perhaps tomorrow? I'll let you get back to it. See you later!" Amy turned to leave, but Sheldon virtually jumped across the room to grab her arm.

"Are you leaving?" He looked down at her with those deep blue eyes that seemed so vulnerable. "I can get rid of them. I mean, we can still…" Sheldon held onto the door frame and looked wistfully at Amy.

Amy simply smiled and tapped his shoulder with a sweet understanding. She knew what it was like to finally have some friends. It was better than any drug. She whispered to him, "You just stay here and get used the small group. It will be good therapy. Okay?"

"Okay…" Sheldon leaned back against the door frame.

Amy gave a short smile and asked, "I'll see you after work. Or are you going to the comic book store directly?"

Sheldon hit the door with his fist, "Damn it… Directly… I won't see you!" He had wanted to have dinner with her, but the guys had told him that they usually went to the comic book store straight after work.

"Don't worry, I'll pick you up tomorrow. It will be fun tonight, Sheldon! You'll love it!" Amy had seen how excited he had been at the mention of comics and she loved his look of joy. If she had a group of friends to go with to her favorite places, she would have jumped at the chance. She didn't understand his hesitation, but reasoned it was the vestiges of his former hermit lifestyle.

"Um… do you want to get something to eat after work tomorrow? I always have a pizza on Thursdays… Maybe we could…"

Before Sheldon could finish his invite, eavesdropping Raj jumped off his seat.

"Oh, that would be great! Hey! I heard the Cheesecake Factory has great pizza. Personal size."

Sheldon slumped, "I'd rather share with Amy."

"You can. Don't worry. Leslie Winkle said…"

Leonard rolled his eyes, "What does she know! Probably went there to find a new boy toy to share a pizza!"

Howard snapped at Leonard, "Oh Leonard, get over it. I slept with Leslie and I got over it EASY!"

Raj laughed, "Got over it? Howard, you were crying like a baby for a week!"

"Better than years, like this guy! That was like three years ago! She's at MIT now!" Howard countered.

But Leonard continued to deceive himself as he looked away and said proudly, "I don't talk about her that much."

Howard shook his head not able to believe his blatant denial, "NO… it's usually mentioned before you complain about how you will NEVER get another woman. God, Leonard, we even have a name for it now. If you whine too much about not having a girlfriend…"

"You're Hofstadering. Its classic." Raj grinned at Leonard who drooped down like a melting marshmallow.

Sheldon remembered the group of Sheldon's talking about Leonard's love interest: Penny. They mentioned she worked at the Cheesecake Factory, and that she also lived in the building, but he had no idea what she looked like or her last name. The other Sheldons hadn't mentioned her last name either. Strange Sheldon thought.

In those parallel universes, Leonard was ALWAYS with this Penny person. Sheldon thought it would be a good opportunity to play multidimensional match maker and get Leonard with Penny. It was worth a shot because his constant pining for ANY woman was, according to the others, becoming tedious. Also, he felt that seeing his new friend as happy as he finally was, would be an added bonus. He would have chosen to have dinner with Amy alone, but he would take what he would get.

"So about the Cheesecake Factory…" Sheldon cleared his throat, "I heard the waitresses are nice."

Amy shot Sheldon a look but she couldn't read him.

"See? Even Sheldon says the waitresses are hot!"

"I didn't say hot. I said nice." Sheldon turned back to Howard and glared.

"That's guy code for hot, Shelly!"

"Never ever call me Shelly…" Sheldon glared at Howard, "Only my family calls me that."

Howard gulped, and changed the subject quickly, "Okay, Sheldon… Now… Time to find a new future Mrs. Hofstadter. Just so long as she is not the future Mrs. Wolowitz, that would be just fine!"

Leonard snorted and shook his head, "Like the love of my life is working the Cheesecake Factory, c'mon!"

"Amy, you will come won't you?" Sheldon blinked a few times and that was all it took.

"Of course! I love Cheesecake." Amy snapped at Leonard, "None for you Leonard!"

"Oh, that's right, you're lactose intolerant." Sheldon smiled as he remembered what the Sheldons had said, but Leonard looked confused.

"How do you know that?"

Sheldon darted his eyes but said quickly, "Kripke told me. He said you were quite the gas factory." The lie flowed off Sheldon's tongue, but Amy was confused by the statement as she didn't think Sheldon had spent enough time with Kripke to discuss Leonard's food aversions, let alone make some disparaging remark.

"That bastard! I hate him more! If that was possible after he stole Leslie from me."

"Oh Geez! They had a one night stand, like she does with everyone in the department! Except Raj… sorry Raj."

Raj glared at Howard, "Enough of this! We are going out tomorrow with Amy's new boyfriend and get your mind off Leslie so you'll stop Hofstadering! Buck up." Raj smiled at Amy whose eyes were wide as saucers. If she were seated, she would have kicked him in the shins, but all she could do was glare, let out a frustrated sigh and turn before she showed how red she could get.

Before the work day was over Amy had had to assure Sheldon on a number of occasions that Leonard was an excellent driver and that when they had gone on long trips together, she had let him drive. Sheldon swallowed his disappointment. He had been genuinely concerned but had also hoped that he could persuade Amy to take him to the comic book store, thus allowing him to spend more time with her. So Sheldon had gone with the group after work with his eyes closed and a tight grip on the handle of the car as if it was a life line.

Leonard, as it turned out, was a fairly good driver. A little chatty for Sheldon's taste, but none the less, they arrived without incident once Sheldon had insisted on no distracting music or eating, or drinking or anything other than Leonard's hands remain at "2 and 10" on the steering wheel. Leonard drew in a breath for strength, but acquiesced. Leonard was quickly realizing, it was easier to comply with Sheldon's 'requests' then fight. The ride to the comic book store was short, thankfully for Leonard.

Once Sheldon had opened the door to the shop, he was in wonderland. It had been over 20 years since he had set foot in a comic book store. He had once had a fairly decent collection, spanning over four decades of comics. His father however, had criticized him for it constantly, calling him a sissy for his little boy picture books.

One night, in a drunken stupor, Sheldon's father had taken his comic books and thrown them in the tub. His father had then turned on the shower and made Sheldon watch as his comic books were ruined. Sheldon knew better than to cry in front of his father, the scar on the side of his face reminded him of that constantly. It was a good thing Sheldon had already hidden most of his prized ones under the floor boards.

Sheldon breathed in the scent of new comics as it brought back memories of happier days. He couldn't hold back his delight and he bounced to the DC section as if he had springs on his heels. An enormous smile bloomed on his face and it seemed nothing could take it off. That was until he heard the name of the shop keeper who came over to join the group.

"Hey guys, who's your new friend?" The average height man with the toothy grin seemed pleasant enough, if a little jittery. His buggy eyes and wildly curled hair were a bit disturbing, not unlike a clown out of makeup. Sheldon just hoped he didn't touch him.

"Oh yeah, Stuart, this is Sheldon. He's a collector too!" Raj didn't notice Sheldon's face turn white when he heard the name: STUART.

Stuart also failed to notice the pale expression of his latest customer, "Oh great! Well, I got lots of old issues. Whatcha you into?"

Sheldon narrowed his eyes at Stuart, "Everything… What are YOU into?" Sheldon was sizing him up. He could take him. Easily. One hit and he would be down, though Sheldon still felt uneasy around him.

Stuart was completely oblivious to the dirty looks he was getting, "Me? Graphic novels mostly. The new publishers, ya know… I'm an artist, so I like that kinda thing. Do you want to look at the New Flash I just got? It's mind blowing!"

"Well, that was a major spoiler! Now I will my mind will be pre-blown!" Sheldon shook his head in disgust.

Stuart didn't know what to say, "Umm Okay… so does that mean you don't want to see it?"

Sheldon rolled his eyes, "Of course I do, but now that I know that, I am ruined for the joy of discovery, I will be less enthused. I tell ya, in Texas we had better service! Thanks for nothing!" Sheldon stomped off toward the shirts to take a look.

"Geez, tough crowd. What's his problem?" Stuart looked back the group of three companions who all shrugged their shoulders.

"Gets me. Amy introduced us."

"Oh really, Amy?!" Stuart seemed to grow a few inches and leaned in, "Amy… did she say anything about me?"

"No… Not a word. Not even a peep. Are you guys still going out on Saturday?" Raj was less than encouraging.

Stuart let out a sigh and slumped, "We are supposed to see a movie, but I suspect she will cancel, cause I have that effect on women... I have made a preemptive call to my doctor for a script for Zoloft just in case." Just then, Sheldon called from across the store for Stuart to get down one of the shirts from the top shelf.

"Oop, duty calls!" Stuart rushed over to help Sheldon who hadn't heard a word of the date with Amy as he had been too engrossed in picking out his new wardrobe. He had loved the Flash Shirt that number Two had been wearing, and he had seen a Green Lantern shirt that reminded Sheldon of number Three's shirt. A Blue Superman Shirt had also caught Sheldon's eyes and he just had to have them all. Stuart was thrilled, and moved on to show him more of his stock from the back room.

The date with Amy was a hush topic as far as the guys were concerned, but Raj was now none too pleased about the date.

Raj whispered to Leonard, "Can't we get Amy to cancel? I want her to go out with Sheldon!"

"SHH! Amy said no way to ANY dates. If you start setting those two up on dates and getting all starry eyed, there will be hell to pay! You know how she can get! Need I remind you when we tried to set her up with cousin David?"

"That was scary. Boy she was pissed!" Howard swallowed and looked pale as he crossed his legs and winced in pain.

"Anyway, if we say, hey Sheldon, Stuart is taking out Amy, but we want you to go out with her, he's likely to freak out! He's already on edge as it is. We KNOW she only wants him as a friend, so if he likes her that would just be awkward, and he may only be interested in her as friend too."

"I doubt that given as how he is all twitterpated when he is around her, seriously." Raj looked like he was explaining this to a five year old, but the guys just looked confused.

Leonard had to ask, "Twitterpated?"

"Dude… it's from Bambi, look it up. Anyway, let's just ask Sheldon if he likes Amy! Let love lead the way!" Raj started to walk over to Sheldon, but Howard grabbed his arm.

"NO! Amy will kill us with some brain monkey disease! Don't rock the boat! We say nothing! Agreed?"

"Agreed…" Raj drooped down and pouted as he perused through the latest Wonder Woman comic books with a defeated scowl. It seemed that he was the only one who believed in true love. "But if Sheldon starts Hofstadering, I am setting them up!"

Initially things were tense between Sheldon and Stuart, but by the end of the evening the whole gang was having a lively debate over who would be the new Robin for Batman. Stuart thought Sheldon was great, especially as he had bought half the store and most of his size XL shirts.

Sheldon had lightened up on Stuart as well. He reasoned that there was no way Amy Farrah Fowler would ever be interested in him. Stuart was a mere peddler of picture books, and not an intellectual giant capable of keeping Amy Farrah Fowler's interest for more than five minutes. He had no worries, unlike those other Sheldons.

The next morning, when Amy picked Sheldon up at his door she noticed that he was wearing different attire: A Red t-shirt with some symbol like a lightning bolt emblazed on the front. The shirt was a little tight over his broad chest, but the color was stunning against his black hair.

Amy liked the new look on him and couldn't help from staring. "Wow, you look wonderful in red. Is that a new shirt?"

"YES! I always wanted a Flash shirt! Now I have 3!" Sheldon was so jubilant over his new clothes that Amy had to giggle.

"That's a lot of shirts. I hope you got a blue one! It would make your eyes practically glow…" Amy stopped her gushing when she saw Sheldon smile at the way she must be was gawking at him.

"The Flash only comes in Red. He's the Scarlet Speedster."

"Oh… right, Scarlet…" Amy knew her face was now the same color.

Sheldon looked at Amy's face and said softly, "I um… did get a blue Superman one, however."

"Oh brilliant!" Amy could not help her reaction as her face lit up with a smile. Then taking control of her mouth again, she blinked a few times, swallowed and turned on dime to head to the door before more of her blatant ogling could be observed. "Just a Friend!" She chanted to herself.

They had yet another run in with a blond neighbor of Sheldon's in the elevator. Amy thought that Sheldon seemed to be overly interested in her figure, as he couldn't seem to take his eyes off her chest which bore a name tag. The blond gave Amy a cheerful grin, said hello to Sheldon and tried to make idle chit chat about the weather. He just smiled in reply.

Since the tests, and given his lingering looks Amy had on occasions wondered if Sheldon was in fact interested in her more than as friend. After all, Amy knew her beckoning pelvis was enough to turn any man's head. But Amy reasoned that she must have misread the brain scan and lingering looks. As appealing as Amy's pelvis could be, there was no way Sheldon would be interested in her given he had this kind of eye candy living next door. And thank goodness he wasn't interested, Amy told herself. Great, she thought. No distractions for her. She forced a smile as she watched him stare at this woman. He's Just a friend, she said to herself.

Great, she thought. She never wanted a real date again. That reminded her of her annual obligation date she had planned for Saturday. Though she hated the fact that she could be the subject of talk, she knew that the guys were just a bunch of gossipy gertie's and would not have been able to withhold the piece of information about her approaching date with Stuart. However during the drive to work Sheldon had not shown any sign that he was at all jealous of Stuart, in fact he had nothing but good things to say about him. This just reaffirmed her observations earlier that morning that he was not romantically interested in her. Great, she thought. Just as it should be.

After work that evening, Sheldon and Amy arrived at the restaurant before their friends. Amy had wanted to get a table in the corner to help Sheldon's anxiety, but he had insisted on finding the section being covered by a waitress named Penny as she was a neighbor.

Amy's throat went suddenly dry as she tried to ask nonchalantly, "Why do you want her section? Do you know her? I thought you didn't know you neighbors?"

"I don't know her intimately, per say, but…" Before Sheldon could say anything else Penny came up to the table. Amy drew in a breath, and held it for a moment. It all made sense now: it was the woman from the elevator. Sheldon was attracted to her, which was obviously why he had been so keen on coming here. And who could blame him? This Penny could turn anyone's head. Her hair was of spun gold her face was like alabaster and did she even have pores? Amy smiled through her disappointment that she did not even recognize as such.

Penny was bubbly and wore a wide smile, "Hey! You guys! What Luck, huh? I had to work a double shift, or I would never have never seen ya!"

Amy smiled, "GREAT!" Which was blurted out a little too loudly for her own taste. She cleared her throat and just smiled.

Sheldon shifted nervously in his chair, "Well…you did see us. This morning… Remember?"

"I know.. I meant.. Never mind! I didn't know you ate here, Mr. Quiet as a mouse!"

"We don't. Not yet. You haven't taken our order? And it's Dr. Cooper, not Mr. or mouse…" Sheldon rolled his eyes and whispered to Amy, "What does Leonard see in her?"

Amy was so nonplussed at the statement that she couldn't speak and had no time to process Sheldon's words before Leonard, Raj and Howard joined them. Penny's beauty had affected their behavior too. Leonard was tongued tied and Raj found that his selective mutism had fired up again. Howard, however, had no problem in speaking to Penny, and the for next ten minutes Penny rolled her eyes at least 7 times that Sheldon could count. Finally, he had had enough of Howard's flirts.

"Look, Howard. She is not for you!" Sheldon nodded toward Leonard. Amy's gaze was fixed on the menu so she did not see Sheldon's subtle move, however Howard did. He knew Leonard needed a new love interest, so he decided to back off and give his bespectacled Casanova friend a try at Penny.

"You would think a restaurant that is named "factory" would be more efficient." Amy sat up in her chair and sipped on the diet coke she had not ordered but had been given by Penny. Amy was now just keen to order her food, the evening seemed to have become tedious and she just wanted to get home as soon as possible. She looked at her watch, hoping time would go by faster. She knew that was impossible, as it seemed was a waitress who could remember her mini corn dog order.

Penny put her hand on Sheldon's shoulder, "Well, neighbor! It's nice to see you out of the laundry room!"

Sheldon tensed up and placed his hand on Amy's thigh. He did not want this woman touching him. He wasn't as much of a germaphobe as he had been as a child, but he still wasn't too pleased with this blond touching him with those man hands laden with god knows what type of E coli genomes.

Amy could tell he was tense and she assumed that he was just nervous over his love interest's sudden affection. She placed her hand on his in a friendly manner to give him support. Sheldon grabbed it and held on to it. Amy looked over and gave him a brief reassuring smile and then quickly looked away.

The strange thing was that even after Penny had walked away, Sheldon still held onto Amy's hand. He had weaved his fingers through hers and rested it on her thigh. Amy could feel his thumb lightly graze her thigh as he clutched her hand. The action made Amy uncomfortable since she, like Sheldon was not accustomed to personal physical contact, but she wanted to be supportive of her new friend and his shyness around people. She had promised to help him after all, and she should have realized that part of the therapy would be to help him talk easily to women who he was attracted to, just like Raj. Amy held onto his hand, but couldn't smile. It was not till Penny had returned, with the wrong order, did he release her hand.

Sheldon soon realized that his attempt at match maker was wasted. Leonard was useless with women, especially one that could not stand still for more than five minutes before she had to rush off to another table.

However Sheldon knew he wasn't much better. Amy had barely looked at him all night. He had wanted to hold her hand again, but felt that it was too bold a move. He was no number Three, able to woo a woman with a modest touch. Even the simple action of holding her hand had garnered no response not even when he had dared to rub his thumb on her thigh. Nothing; no reaction from her.

Perhaps his audacious actions had offended her. He was now not only lost about what to do, but also embarrassed, and annoyed and just wanted the night to be over. The new waitress was spending far too much time trying to chat him up. It was like being in the laundry room all over again and he just wanted to go home.

After an uncomfortable dinner, Amy dropped Sheldon off at Los Robles. He gave her a quick good bye and rushed off to the elevator. Amy watched him disappear and let out a sigh of relief that the night was finally over. Just as she was about to pull away, she received a text from Sheldon:

Amy. Please forgive my behavior tonight. It was ungentlemanly of me.

Amy was puzzled. She had no idea what he was referring to, but she knew he had his own brand of worries. Perhaps it was his remarks about the waitress or his failed attempt to court her?

She simply replied back:

Nothing to forgive Sheldon. You are a gentleman and thank you for the wonderful company. Don't worry. I doubt Penny noticed anything.

Sheldon wrote back right away:

I was afraid of that. It seems I know nothing of the ways of love. I should have kept my nose out of it.

Amy let out a long sigh as if she was reassured. He was friend and nothing more, and this latest text proved it. Like a magician, she turned her ignored disappointment into feigned relief.

She said out loud to herself, hoping she would believe it, "Thank god he's not interested in me, or that would be awkward."

She sent off a quick reply:

Persistence will help. She will come around, don't worry. It helps that she lives near you.

Sheldon texted back: I didn't think of that! Thank you Amy! Perhaps there's hope after all.

Amy had to let out a little laugh at Sheldon's ignorance with women. "Good night. Sheldon"

"Good Night Amy."

A/N: Hope you guys are still on this crazy ride with me... Who's Twitterpated now?