"I don't know about you Sheldon, but I'm am hungry, come on let's go get some lunch," Penny grabbed her purse. "my treat."

"You know I am a little hungry, also it isn't very often you pay for food, I can't miss this opportunity."

They left their compartment and walked the small way to the cafe carriage, it was lunch time so all the tables were full except one, Penny couldn't believe her luck until she reached it and saw the mess, there was no way Sheldon was going to eat at that table.

He walked up behind her and looked at the spilt soft drink, chips, sugar and salt that littered the table. "I hope they keep the kitchen much cleaner that they keep their tables."

"No problem Sheldon I'll get someone to come clean it, you wait here and guard it."

"Guard it, who would want it?" Sheldon looked at her as though she was mad, who would want this dirty table. He couldn't even look at it.

Penny returned with a lady who cleared away the mess and then proceeded to wipe the table with a cloth rag that she had in her hand, and without a word to either of them she walked away.

"Well she might as well have left it as it was, that cloth rag probably carries no end of disease and bacteria."

"I know sweetie, which is why I bought these with us." Penny pulled out a tub of disinfectant wipes and cleaned the table again.

"Thank you Penny."

"So, what's to eat."

When the waitress came to take their lunch order Sheldon ordered a turkey and cheese on rye and Penny a chicken salad, just as the waitress was to leave the table Sheldon cleared his throat and said "Excuse me."

The waitress turned to look at the lanky physicist with a bored expression on her face

"I need to make sure that my food is not touched with any human hands." he then pulled out of his bag a set of food preparation gloves and gave them to the waitress. "Please ask them to use these."

The waitress looked at the gloves in her hand and then back at Sheldon, she placed them in her pocket and walked anyway.

Sheldon inhaled sharply when he saw that she placed the gloves into her pocket. "They are next to useless now." he went to grab another set out of his bag but Penny stopped him.

"Sweetie, remember don't piss off the people that prepare your food."

Sheldon looked at Penny then back at the waitress who was now serving another table. "But Penny."

"Look, we are going to be on this train for two nights, you will need to eat lunch, dinner tonight and breakfast, lunch and dinner tomorrow night, surely you realised that you wouldn't be able to control your food when you decided to take on this journey. Now if we had gone by plane I could have prepared some food for the journey, it was your choice to come by train."

Sheldon sullying looked at Penny he knew she was right, but he hated to know that people were touching his food, people that hadn't disinfected their hands properly, but he also knew he had two choices, either take the chance, or not eat, and he was hungry.

When the waitress returned with their food Sheldon looked at it for tell tale signs of contamination, their were none.

The food served was actually very nice and soon their lunch was over, Penny ordered a coffee and Sheldon a buttermilk for afterwards.

Penny poured the sugar into her coffee and watched it slowly break through the creme on the top.

"Sheldon, can I ask you a personal question?"

"You can ask, whether I choose to answer will be another matter." he took a sip of his buttermilk.

"Do you mind that Amy is seeing another guy?"

"No, why would I? She was never my girlfriend Penny, I don't know why people cannot understand that Amy was never my girlfriend, she is my friend that is a girl, just like you Penny."

"Ok, but you don't see her anymore. Don't you miss her company?"

"We still Skype on a regular basis."

The conversation stopped and Penny really didn't know what else to say, she looked out the window, it was a wet day outside and the rain was beating against the train.

Sheldon finished his drink and stood up. "Penny I'm going to return to the compartment, thank you for lunch."

"You're welcome sweetie. I might just hang back here for a little longer, see you later."

XXXX

Sheldon took the bottom bunk, something about childhood memories gave him an aversion to top bunks. Penny climbed up the ladder and got comfortable. It was only 9.30pm, but apparently Sheldon was sleepy and needed to go to sleep. Penny on the other hand wasn't and as she slipped under the covers she grabbed a magazine to read. Sheldon turned his light off and settled down for the night.

"Penny, you are the first person since I left home that I have shared a bedroom with."

"Oh gee, lucky me."

"All through college I had my own room and when I travelled to Heidelberg I boarded with one of the Professor's and his family, I had my own room."

"So you didn't get in on with any of the girls?"

"Get it on what?"

"Sheldon, did you ever kiss anyone when you were in college?"

"Penny I was 11 when I entered college, 14 when I finished. I was 15 when I travelled to Germany, I can assure you I did not "get it on".

"Did you ever kiss Amy?"

"Penny what is your fascination with my kissing other people? No, but Amy did kiss me once."

"She did, and she never told me, darn. So did you like it?"

"I didn't dislike it, but I do not like physical contact, even from Amy."

"Perhaps you just haven't met the right person?"

Sheldon shifted in his bed, this conversation was very uncomfortable with him, he wished Penny would just settle down and go to sleep.

"Ok, have you ever fallen in love with anyone?"

Sheldon didn't response for a full minute. "Penny, I am your friend correct?"

"Yes"

"Well I believe that friends do not make other friends do or say things that make them uncomfortable, I find this questioning uncomfortable, good night."