The Relationship Evolution Chapter 4, a big bang theory fanfic

Author's Note: Thank you guys so much for reading. I have really enjoyed your responses to my story thus far. I will admit that it was very fun to leave the last chapter with such a cliff hanger. This chapter was both a challenge and a delight to write. I hope you enjoy it!

Sheldon

Ever since proposing the amendment to the Relationship Agreement, Sheldon found that his concentration and dedication to his work had returned. It was the strangest thing. He had been sure that the physical contact with Amy had been the cause for his distraction and that cutting it off completely would be the cure. But ever since he had signed the amendment and had started regularly holding Amy's hand, he found that, rather than diminishing his concentration, he was better able to focus. It was a fascinating turn of events.

At first he had found the contact a little uncomfortable. He trusted that Amy regularly washed her hands, but he still couldn't help thinking about all the germs she must be carrying around on her hands after dealing with Rhesus monkeys all day. And that's not to mention that the least awkward way to be holding hands was to be sitting or standing rather close to the person in question. But as Amy continued to regularly grab his hand he found that those thoughts started disappearing and he became used to the contact. Almost comfortable even. Not that he would ever admit that out loud.

He was rather fond of Amy. At the beginning of the official relationship there had been many blunders, apparently by him, although at times he really was at a loss to understand just what he had said or done to upset Amy. Thank goodness for Leonard and Penny. Not that he would ever admit that out loud.

He really enjoyed spending time with Amy, so when she asked him over to her house for dinner unexpectedly, he was happy to say yes. And when he saw the effort she had gone to, to make sure his dietary preferences were met, he had been touched. Sometimes he thought that no one understood him better than Amy; even his mother or his beloved Mee-Maw. Not that he would ever admit that out loud.

One of his favorite things about Amy was her sincere interest in his work. He liked that he could talk to her about it, that she would listen without judging every word out of his mouth, and most importantly, that she understood what he was talking about and would sympathize with his problems. As to some of the blunders he had made, the area of her work was probably the largest of them. He honestly hadn't understood just what she found so fascinating about neurobiology, and had said as much to her on several occasions. Only after working with her had he truly seen the value of her work and had come to appreciate that she was, in fact, at the top of her field. He had learned, through Leonard and Penny, that sometimes he had to take an interest in what interested Amy. Luckily, that was now easy, as he really was interested.

By the time Sheldon asked Amy about her work, they had finished eating. As she started talking they both sat back on the couch. Sheldon had gotten so used to holding Amy's hand in such situations that he automatically grabbed it. When Amy stopped talking he was at a loss as to what the look on her face meant. Was she ill? "Amy? Are you alright?"

She looked at their hands and then looked up. "I…" she said, and then before he knew what was happening she was kissing him. Her lips were touching his. His eyes shut of their own accord and his mind blanked. All he could focus on at the moment was the fact that Amy's lips were touching his lips. And then her lips were gone.

His eyes opened as she sat back. The entire exchange couldn't have lasted more than a couple of seconds. As Amy sat back Sheldon instinctively squeezed her hand. She paused and gave him a curious look. He realized what he was doing and loosened his grip. They sat staring at each other for a bit, neither one talking, although still holding hands.

Sheldon didn't know what to think first. Why had Amy done that? It was, of course, yet another violation to the Relationship Agreement. And then there were the germs to consider. His first instinctual thought was that he needed to immediately sterilize his mouth with mouthwash. And yet, he hadn't necessarily found the pressure of her lips on his repellent either. He found himself thinking that it might have almost been enjoyable. Not that he would admit that out loud.

This kiss was different from their last kiss nearly a year ago. For one thing, Amy most certainly is not drunk, and, by the look on her face, is anxiously waiting for his response. He would have to respond carefully. He didn't want to inadvertently hurt her feelings, but he didn't want to have to worry about Amy potentially kissing him in the future either.

Amy was the first one to break the silence. She cleared her throat. "Um. I'm sorry." Sheldon looked at her, at a loss as to how to respond. "Perhaps you should go, Sheldon. It's getting late."

Sheldon blinked. "Go?...alright." He wasn't sure why Amy was asking him to go. Was she upset? Why would she be upset? She was the one who kissed him…he hadn't violated the Relationship Agreement. He got up and walked to the door. He turned around before he left, cleared his throat and said, "I had a very…nice evening. Thank you for dinner." Amy nodded but didn't look at his eyes. He paused again, contemplating what to say, but he was still at a loss. So instead of saying anything he simply turned around and walked out the door.

By the time Sheldon had gotten back to his building, he had concluded one thing: he had no idea what to do. It wasn't a feeling he liked, and one which, until recently, he used to be unfamiliar with. He contemplated talking with Leonard about the subject, but wondered if he'd have any more idea what Amy was thinking than him. He supposed he could act like nothing had happened. The last time Amy had kissed him, they had agreed to pretend it had never happened, and that had worked out well. But even Sheldon knew that the last time was different than this time. Last time they were no more than friends and Amy had been drunk. No, the more he thought about it, the less likely it seemed that a reboot would work.

And why had Amy been in such a rush to get him out the door? Confound it! He was simply no good at figuring out the internal workings of the female mind. Not that he would admit that out loud.

And then it hit him. Penny. If anyone was capable of understanding the inner workings of a female, it was Penny. She was female after all…And now that he thought about it, she likely will have heard about the incident from Amy. This gave him reason to pause. Hmm. He really hated it when he had to admit he might have been at fault for something…especially to Penny. And he was at fault right? He wasn't sure for what, but it seemed the only logical explanation for Amy's behavior. And it wouldn't be the first time he had made a blunder without realizing it. Being a boyfriend was hard. And that he would admit out loud.

He still wondered occasionally why so many of his gender sought out romantic attachments. He was very fond of Amy, but sometimes it seemed he spent an inordinate amount of time trying to correct a blunder. It was baffling.

By this time he was at the top of the stairs, so he walked over to Penny's apartment and knocked.

Knock Knock Knock Penny

"It's open!"

Sheldon hated it when Penny did that. Didn't she know he could be a villain ready to open the door and accost her? He walked in to find her and Leonard on the couch. Leonard looked annoyed at Sheldon.

"Penny, don't you know that it is dangerous to leave your door unlocked and to invite a person in without first checking who they are? I could have been a villain ready to open the door and accost you at the first chance I got."

Leonard rolled his eyes. "What do you want Sheldon? We're busy here."

Sheldon looked at Penny. "Penny I need to talk to you privately." He looked at Leonard. "Leonard, get out."

Leonard started to protest, but Penny cut him off, "Leonard you had probably better just go. You know he'll never let up until I talk to him. I'll meet you back at your place." Leonard rolled his eyes again, got up, and went out the door.

Penny looked at Sheldon, "So what does the great Dr. Cooper wish to speak to me about?"

Sheldon gave her a look. "I think we both know that you already know what I wish to speak to you about."

"Ah yes. Would this have anything to do with the 20 or so texts I've received from Amy in the past 30 minutes wondering if she still has a boyfriend?"

Sheldon was taken aback. "But why would she wonder if she still had a boyfriend? That's just silly. Of course she has a boyfriend. She's read the Relationship Agreement. She knows that there is a 72 hour notice of impending termination of the agreement if one or both parties wishes to terminate the relationship. Why would she wonder that?"

"Well, because she kissed you and you ran out of there."

"What? Ran out of there? She told me to leave. What was I supposed to do?" Sheldon was even more confused than before the conversation started. Women truly were baffling.

"Well, sweetie, you could have responded to her kiss. She thought you hated it and that's why you weren't saying anything. She said she knows that you like to avoid confrontation when there is, and I quote, 'potential for female weeping'."

Just when Sheldon thought he couldn't become any more confused, he did. "But this makes no sense. I didn't say anything because I had nothing to say. She kissed me without warning, in violation of the Relationship Agreement, and then apologized. I was completely baffled by the experience and had no time to process what had happened before she asked me to leave."

Penny gave him a look, like she was considering something. "Sheldon. I have a question for you, and I want you to answer honestly."

"Penny, you know I don't lie."

"I know…but I just wanted to make sure you knew I was expecting a real answer from you."

Sheldon looked at her. "Well…what is it?" He detested when a person stated they wanted to ask a question and then took longer than necessary to ask it.

Penny paused another moment, as if thinking about something. Finally she looked at him. "Did you enjoy having Amy kiss you?"

Sheldon thought for a moment. He didn't really want to answer Penny's question. For one thing he had been trying not to think of the answer to that particular question. He thought back to his initial thoughts. It was true that he hadn't found the pressure of her lips on his unpleasant, but he wasn't sure how to process that, so he moved on to his next thought. The shear amount of germs involved in kissing was something he just wasn't sure he could get past. Although, now he thought about it, he had yet to rinse his mouth out with mouthwash or some other form of alcohol. He hoped he didn't get sick. He looked at Penny, who was still waiting for her answer.

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"Penny. It's not often that you are going to hear me utter those words. Please pay attention, as you will not be likely to hear them from me again. What I mean, is that I don't know how I feel about it."

Penny thought for a moment. "But wait…so you didn't hate it?"

"No."

"But you didn't like it?"

Sheldon didn't answer. "How should I best respond to Amy? I don't want to hurt her feelings, but I also don't want her thinking it is ok to keep kissing me. We have a Relationship Agreement for a reason."

"Look Sheldon, I'm not really the one to talk to about this. What you should be doing is talking with Amy. But you might want to ask yourself this: what is Amy getting out of this relationship?"

Sheldon was baffled. "What do you mean? She's getting a relationship with a brilliant physicist. Who wouldn't want that?"

"Just…think about it ok? And talk to her. Soon."

Sheldon gave Penny a confused look. "…Alright. But I'm still not sure what you're talking about…but you have given me something to think about and have at least given me a reason for Amy's actions." He looked at her and gave her a sincere smile. "Thank you Penny."

"You're welcome Sweetie."

Sheldon walked back over to his apartment. He made a short stop at the bathroom and used his mouth wash before continuing in to his bedroom. He could hear Penny telling Leonard what they had talked about, but he didn't much care. She had given him a great deal to think about. Her question to him kept playing in his head. What did Amy get out of the relationship?

He started listing things in his mind. She gets to say that she is the girlfriend of the brilliant Dr. Sheldon Cooper, she gets a regulated date night once per month, she even gets to hold my hand whenever she feels like it…I don't know what Penny is talking about. He thought about the relationships of his friends. Despite their belief that he didn't care about their relationships (and to a large degree they were right) he had found it helpful to observe them, usually for tips on what not to do. What made their relationships different than his with Amy? The best he could come up with was that they all participated in intercourse. He recoiled at the thought. It was a germ related nightmare to think about.

But wait. Is that what Penny was talking about? Is that why Amy kissed him? Amy had in the past asked him to participate in coitus with her, but he had always dismissed it. It had been so long since she had asked that he had thought perhaps she had dismissed the idea as well. Well, this was something to think about. Did Amy hope that she could get him to participate in such an unsanitary activity? Oh dear. This was going to be a problem.

He did indeed enjoy Amy's company, and didn't find hand holding detestable anymore either, now that he saw the use in it. The kiss itself was still a baffling thing for him. He knew that if anyone else had kissed him he wouldn't have liked it at all. But Amy's kiss just hadn't been detestable. He still didn't think he liked the idea of doing it all the time. But where to go from here? How did he fix this and keep both himself and Amy happy?

He again thought of his friends and their relationships. Suddenly he had an idea. He gave it careful thought and concluded that it was in all likelihood the best compromise for both parties. He drew up the necessary paperwork to again amend the Relationship Agreement. He glanced at his watch and found that it was perhaps a little late to be going over to Amy's…but then again, if he didn't resolve the issue soon, he was unlikely to get a good night's sleep anyway.

He walked into the living room. "Leonard, I need you to drive me to Amy's"

"At this hour? Sheldon it's after 11:00."

"Yes. And be quick about it, if you please."

Leonard grumbled, but grabbed his coat.

Knock Knock Knock Amy

When Amy answered the door a couple moments later, she had a baffled expression on her face. He could also see that her eyes were red rimmed. "Sheldon, what are you doing here?"

Sheldon looked at her and took a deep breath. "I have another proposed amendment to the Relationship Agreement." He handed her the sheet of paper. She read it, but looked up confused.

"What brought this on?"

Sheldon cleared his throat. "Well…I gave the events of this evening some thought. I concluded that this was the best compromise for the situation."

Amy looked again at the document. When she looked up, she looked considerably happier than when she had opened the door. "I agree. Where do I sign?"

A/N: Thank you again for reading. And Please remember to review! I'll be working hard at the next chapter so that you can find out just what compromise Dr. Cooper proposed. :)