Yeah, yeah, time for the annual apology about how much I suck. Sorry this took longer than usual. I promised you guys a double update when we reached 100 reviews, and since we did (yay by the way!) I had writer's block for two chapters instead of one. Sorry. The next chapter will be up anywhere from a few hours to tomorrow.
DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. Zero. Zilch. Nada.
Leonard sat idly in his car outside the airport, watching the exit door from the terminal in anticipation of his secret fiancée and her father's arrival. Despite having a week to prepare for today's meeting, he was still nervous. He knew Wyatt liked him, but that didn't make this any less daunting. After all, he was going to have to ask him for permission to marry his daughter. That could terrify any man.
Leonard found himself smiling when Penny appeared in the doorway, a large duffel bag slung over her shoulder. Wyatt stood next to her, holding another suitcase in his hand. Penny smiled and gestured to the car before leading Wyatt over. Leonard instantly felt better when he saw her. At the end of this trip, it would all be worth it. He'd be marrying the girl of his dreams with the approval of the man whose opinion mattered the most, and Penny would be happy. That was all that mattered.
"Leonard!" Wyatt greeted him warmly when they reached the vehicle. "Well, are you going to sit in there all day, or are you going to get out of that car to give me a hug, son?"
Penny laughed and Leonard faked one as he climbed out from behind the wheel. Son. He thought to himself. Oh Wyatt, you have no idea…The older man grinned and pulled him into a bone-crushing hug, which made the physicist secretly cringe into his shoulder. This tight squeezing really wasn't helping his nerves…If Wyatt didn't approve of the engagement, or – dare he think it – find out he'd been lied to, he would be more than capable of kicking Leonard's pathetic, lying, nerdy ass.
"Okay, Daddy," Penny interjected, placing a hand on her father's shoulder. "Why don't you help me put this in the trunk?" Wyatt nodded and took the bigger bag from his daughter, and Leonard faked enthusiasm until they were out of sight. Now, he exhaled, letting out a breath he didn't even realize he'd been holding.
He had a feeling this would be a long, long week…
He was pathetic.
No one told him he was, but he knew. He was unhappy, and weak, and alone, and just…pathetic. In every sense of the word. He was pathetic.
For starters, he couldn't talk to women again. He could still force himself to say a few words to Bernadette or Penny or Amy, but for the most part, he had receded back into silence. He had tried to do what he did before, just force himself to speak, to say anything, anything at all, but he couldn't. Several times he tried to do it, just opened his mouth only for no words to come out. It was like his vocal cords had been clipped or something - one day he can speak to women, and the next he can't again. It was maddening. And next, he just sat by himself all the time nowadays, which was so depressing. His friends tried to make him feel better, they did, and they were all being extremely considerate (well, except for Sheldon, who didn't modify his usual Sheldon-like behavior). But it didn't make him feel any better. So, he often sought solace by himself, in a restaurant or book store or café, where he mulled over a hot meal or a book or a cup of coffee. He probably looked like a total loser, just sitting by himself all the time. And, to top it all off, no matter how many times he told himself to move on deep down he knew he was still hung up on a girl who used him to get to his best friend.
He was pathetic. Raj Koothrappali was pathetic.
The astrophysicist sighed to himself and shifted in his seat, as he sat alone in his favorite coffee shop. Outside, it was a beautiful California day, but here he sat, sad, silent, pathetic. He looked down, staring into the paper cup that held his chai tea as if doing so would give him an answer to all of his problems. It's what he did best – sitting around and feeling sorry for himself, waiting for an epiphany to come out of nowhere and make everything better. And newsflash, said epiphany never came.
He was too busy wallowing in self-hatred to hear the bell chime as another patron walked into the store. He didn't hear her sharp, intake of breath, didn't look up until she'd been staring at him in shock for at least a good thirty seconds.
Danielle stood there awkwardly, her glossy pink lips forming a small 'o'. Finally, she looked away before their eyes could meet, crossed her arms over her chest and pulled her handbag closer to her body, squeezing it repeatedly like a lifeline. Raj opened his mouth, but again, no sound came out, his sentence getting caught in his throat on the way up.
She turned to look at him once again, and he found himself looking into her blue eyes, which were staring at him from behind her glasses. She only spoke two words to him, an under her breath 'I'm sorry' all that was said between them, and then she turned on her heel, the bell sounding again as she fled from the coffee shop, raced back to her car.
The word finally emerged, tumbling out from his lips, just a little bit too late. "…Hi."
If there's anything you'd guys like to see moving forward, feel free to leave it in a review or send me a private message. Maybe you'll inspire me and help with the writer's block!