Penny rolled out of bed with a loud yawn. She was glad that it was Friday and now free to do whatever she wanted. Slipping on her fuzzy pink slippers, she realized that she was still in Sheldon's body. His feet were too big, so she kicked them away. The floor was cold, and she mentally noted to ask Sheldon for pairs of socks.
She was able to get out of Sheldon's job by using up all of his vacation days. No one questioned her when she headed out. They were very glad that Dr. Cooper's finally taking a vacation. Penny hadn't told Sheldon yet, and she made sure the boys didn't say a word about it to him. She couldn't take it anymore. The numbers and equations were hard to look at. The constant women grad students throwing themselves at her was getting too much. She didn't know how Sheldon could handle this at a daily basis.
Sheldon, meanwhile, wasn't doing any better with Penny's work. Her manager had called her phone numerous times about how close she is from getting fired if she screwed up one more time. According to him, Sheldon had taken part in several confrontations, and almost poured a glass of lemonade down one of the customer's shirt. I would have done the same for good reasons.
Pouring herself a cup of coffee, she thought about how she missed going to the gym. She loved working out a sweat and secretly checking out the hot guys in the gym lifting weights. Sipping her warm drink, Penny wondered what Sheldon would look like if he was rip and wearing leather jackets like the other guys she dated. She snickered at the picture in her head. She could only see her Sheldon skinny and in his geeky t-shirts.
It wouldn't be such a bad thing to add a little bit of muscle in Dr. Whackadoodle.
She glanced over to the wall clock, saying to herself that the gym she usually goes to would be open in about an hour. Penny put her empty cup in the sink and headed towards the bathroom. She was standing in front of her bedroom doorway when Sheldon's knocking began to sound out. Turning around, she opened the door and smiled. "Morning, Sheldon."
"Good morning, Penny. Now, I know it is eight in the morning and you have a rule about not waking you up before 11AM. I just need you to read this over and sign where it tells you to," Sheldon handed her a document with at least twenty pages titled The Body Swap Agreement.
Penny quickly flipped through the pages. "You expect me to read all of this?"
He nodded. "Of course. Until we return to our bodies, we will need an agreement that outlines our duties and responsibilities we must agree to."
She gaped at him. She knew it was coming sooner or later. "Sheldon, I don't feel like reading all of this. Plus, I'm heading to the gym in an hour."
"You are certainly not."
"Uh, yeah I am."
Sheldon snatched the document out of her hand and turned to the third page, pointing at a section that directed Penny's attention. "According to this clause, you may not do any activities that I object. I object you from going to the gym."
Penny huffed. "Why not? I feel like using an elliptical and don't you want a nice beach body for the summer?"
He chuckled. "Penny, Penny, Penny... You know I do not go to the beach. Who knows what hazardous material you might encounter? I once went to the beach with my family and ended up stepping on broken glass which resulted in a horrible foot infection."
"But I didn't sign it, so you can't make me!"
He rolled his eyes. Penny's as stubborn as him in some occasions. "Let me remind you that I am in your body, and I am not afraid of doing anything to it."
"Really? Like what?" Penny taunted.
"I would say have coitus with strange men but the thought of touching and unnecessary exchange of bodily fluids is repulsive. In addition to that, I don't want to see a naked man," Sheldon grimaced. "Also, sexual intercourse with random men may increase your chance in contracting an STD."
"How thoughtful," Penny crossed her arms. "I'm still going to the gym."
Sheldon stared at the document in his hands. "Let's make a deal. You read this over and make any changes that you deem are necessary. The limit to that is only three. You must agree to the whole clause, not part of it. Sign it and return it to me in a half an hour and you may use my body."
She took the papers. "Fine, thank you. What about you? Are you going to do anything today?"
"I do want to go to the new model train store an hour away from here."
"Sounds like fun," Penny replied with a hint of sarcasm that Sheldon didn't catch as usual.
He grinned. "Great! I need a ride to it, so you are obligated to take me."
She shot him a look. "Obligated?"
"Yes. According to Section 5, Paragraph 8, one of your duties is to drive me anywhere."
"Why would you need to put that in the agreement? It's not going to affect me if you can't go anywhere."
"Au contraire. If for some reason I get hit by a vehicle, the impact will cause damage to your body. I have it stated in the agreement to ensure safety for both of us."
Penny sighed. "Fine, anything else?"
"There's one more thing," Sheldon stepped to the side and leaned down to the floor, bringing himself up afterwards with a box at hand. "This is for you as well."
He handed the small box to a confused Penny. "What's this for?"
"I realized that you use your green apple shampoo to wash my hair. I would like you to use my shampoo and conditioner. The thought of my hair smelling differently when this effect reverses bothers me. In return, I'll use your green apple shampoo to wash your hair," Sheldon answered.
She glanced down to the box, then to the agreement. "I don't have a choice, do I?"
"You do have a choice, but it may or may not be subjected as a violation to the agreement."
Penny pursed her lips and looked down on Sheldon. "Alright. Good day, Sheldon."
"Good day, Penny."
Section 10 Clause 5: Both parties must refrain from alcohol consumptions due to the fact that it lowers inhibitions...
Section 13 Clause 9: Penny Queen may not use Dr. Sheldon Cooper's body for any carnal activity...
Section 21 Clause 18: Penny Queen may not add any tattoos or piercings in Dr. Sheldon Cooper's body...
Section 30 Clause 20: Both parties must bathe the body they are temporarily housed in at least twice a day...
Section 35 Clause 2: Penny Queen may not use Dr. Sheldon Cooper's body for self-abuse...
Section 41 Clause 15: Both parties must go to work at their scheduled times...
...
Any violations made towards the agreement will be subjected to a strike, a hefty fine, or a scolding based on the actions done.
Penny reached out for a pen and began jotting down notes on the piece of paper she had. Most of the clauses were reasonable, some she definitely did not want to agree to. One clause forbade her from drinking coffee while in Sheldon's body. She wasn't allowed to go to night clubs or parties. Reading over the agreement one more time, she realized that almost all of the clauses were either about her or both of them. Sheldon didn't have any restrictions to follow, so to be fair...
1. Dr. Sheldon Cooper must attend Penny Queen's classes at the community college which starts in two weeks. He must be able to bring up her current average up to at least a "B+."
2. Dr. Sheldon Cooper must eat WHATEVER Penny Queen decides. He is not to follow his routine.
3. Dr. Sheldon Cooper must allow Penny Queen to obtain a license for him. That way after switching back, Sheldon will be able to drive and not ask Penny to be chauffeured around town.
4. Dr. Sheldon Cooper must not act like a jackass towards The Cheesecake Factory patrons. Yes, they are annoying, but Penny Queen needs this job.
5. Dr. Sheldon Cooper must go to the nail salon tomorrow for a scheduled appointment. Those babies aren't going to paint themselves!
6. Dr. Sheldon Cooper must use the hair and skin products needed to maintain Penny Queen's body.
7. Dr. Sheldon Cooper must allow Penny Queen to work out. A win for both parties in the agreement.
She laughed to herself after seeing she went past three. Penny will probably have to endure another lecture from Sheldon, but she'll risk it. Capping her pen back on, she headed to her bedroom and changed into the new sweats she bought in Sheldon's size.
She knew that she'll feel sore by the end of the day since Sheldon's body isn't used to her exercise regime, but it was a much needed work out. Grabbing her notes and the agreement she left in the living room, Penny walked out of the apartment, only to bump into Sheldon who was about to knock on her door. She quickly gave him the papers before leaving with a smiled and wave.
Sheldon scanned the paper. "Penny, you were supposed to change only three!" He yelled out towards the stairs.
"Bye Sheldon!" She said loudly before she reached the third floor landing.
Later on...
knock, knock, knock, "Penny?"
knock, knock, knock, "Penny?"
knock, knock, knock, "Penny?"
Penny got up from the couch and answered the door. She was tired and exhausted, but she knew at the end, it'll be worth it. Her body was incredibly sore, but she felt better stretching out what little muscles Sheldon had. The door swung open and Penny was greeted by Sheldon who was wearing her Hello Kitty pajamas. She snickered, picturing an image of what if Sheldon's actual body were in those pajamas. That'll be a sight.
"May I have a word with you?" Sheldon asked.
Penny nodded and invited her friend inside her apartment. He took a seat on his usual spot on Penny's couch. She noticed that he seemed a bit distracted and dismayed. "Sheldon, is something wrong?"
"My brother's birthday is this weekend and my mother is forcing me to fly out to Texas for his party," Sheldon answered with a sigh.
"Well, tell your mom that you don't want to go."
He directly looked at her. "My brother and I aren't very close. We used to fight most of the time when we were younger. To this day, we haven't spoken as much. He's turning 35, and Mom believes that this a great time to bond with him."
"You don't seem interested. Again, tell her no."
"Penny, I can't tell her no. She won't budge. When I say she's forcing me, she's forcing me. The last thing she said was that if I didn't go, she'll personally fly out here with George."
Penny sat down beside him. "I guess you're going. But how are we going to tell them about our problem?"
"I suggest you fly down to Galveston and pretend to be me."
She shook her head. "Yeah, I really don't want to go to Texas alone. I'll accompany you instead and we play as each other for the time being."
"Do I have to go to the party?"
"I'm not going to it by myself."
Sheldon shrugged. "Fine, just remember not to drink alcohol. It'll be a breach of the agreement you signed earlier today."
She groaned. "Alright. When are we leaving?"
"Tonight and I have our plane tickets ready," Sheldon stood and walked to the door, leaving Penny to gape at him.
"Seriously? Tonight?"
"It is what I said. Our flight departs in a few hours, which will take us three to get to Houston. We'll be at my mother's early Saturday morning, and the party is on Sunday evening. Monday morning, we take the train back to Pasadena. I'll email you the complete itinerary. So in the meantime, pack what you need and be ready in thirty minutes. I'll contact the university and inform them that you'll be using up the vacation days. I will be doing the same thing with your manager."
Penny listened. "Sheldon, my manager isn't going to let me miss a day. He's going to fire me!"
"Understood. This may be an opportunity for you to get a better job."
"Like what?"
Sheldon thought for a moment. "There's an opening at the university as a secretary."
"How much do they pay?"
"$40 an hour."
She smiled. "Even if I don't get fired, I'm still interested in getting the job."
"Good. Now start packing. We don't want to miss our flight now."
A/N:
I'm not planning on abandoning this story. It's only going to take me a while to update.
Sorry for any errors or if this seems a little rushed.
Up next: Texas with Sheldon and Penny