Chapter 6
Penny waited until Howard and Bernadette fell asleep when she scooted closer to Sheldon's bedside.
The nurses had removed some of the bandages on his face, and the scrapes and bruises were healing, but his lips still held a scowl. Smiling, her hand reached out and brushed his.
"Sheldon…" Penny made a face. Her whisper seemed so loud, but peering to see if the sleeping pair behind her stirred, she continued. "It's me, Penny…"
Days ago, she did some research on comas and vegetative states. She searched articles and forums, looking up anything that would help her understand what was going on, and to see if she could help. She wanted to find a light.
Her search was not fruitless. She had stumbled upon a forum one night, where a number of people that had friends and relatives pull through vegetation with sensory stimulation. Talk to them, touch them…and they just might wake up.
From then on, she had begun quietly talking to the man-child in the bed. She earnestly recounted what the nurses had done; repeated things the boys would say when they visited, or what had been on the television at the time.
As long as she kept talking to him.
"Today was anything-can-happen Thursday you know. Surprise, surprise! Your mother visited today. It was really sweet." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. It was still awkward speaking to Sheldon in this state.
She was still expecting him to suddenly bolt up, yelling 'Danger! Danger!' but he lay there, his soft breathing and the steady blips from the heart monitor were the only indications that he was still alive.
"Leonard dropped by after. He apologized to me, you know. About the lab assistant thing. I said it was all right. We're cool now."
She thought back on the night of the CalTech Thanksgiving gala. Penny had actually been meaning to speak to Leonard afterwards about her feelings, or lack thereof, after she had come to a realization that her heart had only skipped a beat near the presence of a certain doctor…
It was only good timing when his assistant had stalked up to them to claim her 'Lenny'.
Penny's thoughts paused when she heard Howard shift, but she relaxed when his breathing evened out.
"Bernadette and Howard are staying with us tonight, too. I'd say it was the most interesting anything-can-happen Thursday ever."
A nurse walked in to run routine vital checks and Penny sat down again. Thinking back to Mrs. Cooper's visit, she smiled.
His mother's parting words earlier had warmed her soul, and if she was going to be his guardian angel, heck. She was going to be the best one there is.
Once the nurse left, she leaned in close to Sheldon's ear and quietly sang 'Soft Kitty'.