Amy thought about going straight to bed, but she decided to do a little research on Sheldon instead. It should be easy enough to find something about him. She knew his full name, that he was a theoretical physicist, and that he worked at Cal Tech. She found some of his published work, but the third entry down grabbed her attention: "Is Smart the New Sexy?"

Clicking the link took Amy to an article in the LA Times about local scientists. She scanned the article quickly and it looked like a bit of a puff piece, but there was a photo of Sheldon there with another man with glasses, a black button down shirt, and jeans. The label said, "Dr. Sheldon Cooper, theoretical physicist and Dr. Leonard Hofstadter, experimental physicist." Her eye was drawn to Sheldon. He wore a charcoal button down shirt and a similarly colored tie with accents. They looked like they were on some kind of panel.

This must be the roommate, Amy thought. He was decent looking, but nowhere near as handsome as Sheldon.

Amy went to bed before she found something she didn't want to see. She was nervous enough about her date with Sheldon and she didn't even know when it was.

The next morning, Amy got up to go to work. She had had the strangest dream where she had met a very handsome man at the coffee shop after she had gotten stood up again. She tried to shrug it off while she showered and got dressed. Then her phone dinged with a new text message.

Good morning. I hope I'm not writing you too early, but I was wondering if you would like to have dinner tonight? Also, could you pick me up? -S

Amy stared blankly at her phone for a full minute. It hadn't been a dream. Or she was still dreaming.

That sounds lovely. It shouldn't be a problem to pick you up. See you tonight. -A

Great. My address is 2311 Los Robles, Apartment 4A. I'll see you at seven? -S

See you at seven. -A

Amy didn't know if she should be annoyed that she wouldn't have much time to get ready or if she should be happy that she wouldn't have to be nervous for long. Either way, she had to get going to work.

The day moved quickly and Amy was ready to go at the end of the day. She barely had enough time to get home and change before having to go pick up Sheldon. Her outfit was a little more subdued than she would normally wear, but she didn't want to scare him off right away.

When Amy pulled up outside of the building, she wasn't sure if she was supposed to go in and get him or if she should just text him so he could come down. She decided to just ask.

Hey. I'm here. Would you like me to come up? -A

Yeah. I'm running a little late. I'm so sorry. -S

Amy shrugged and got out of her car. She walked into the building and saw that the elevator was broken. She sighed and started take the stairs. When she reached the fourth floor, Amy checked to make sure the apartment was 4A. She knocked on the door and quite possibly the most beautiful woman she had ever seen opened the door.

Amy blinked a couple of times before asking, "Is Sheldon here?"

The beautiful blonde woman smiled and said, "You must be Amy. Hi, I'm Penny." Then she shook Amy's hand and ushered her into the apartment. Leonard, dressed much more casually than he had been in the newspaper article, stood up from the couch and introduced himself. Amy didn't admit that she already knew who he was from the newspaper article.

Penny sat down next to Leonard and pressed into his side. It was clear to Amy that these two were pair bonded and Amy had to admit that she felt a little better about the blonde. She was surprised by how jealous she was already. It wasn't like she even had a real claim on Sheldon.

Amy had never been very good at small talk, but she made an attempt. "So, are you both scientists, too?"

Penny started laughing, and Amy was worried that she had asked an inappropriate question. "No. Leonard is, but I'm an actress. I'm actually about as far away from a scientist as you can get," Penny said. "But, Sheldon said that you are a neuro something or other."

"I'm a neurobiologist. I study the brain," Amy told them simply.

That was when Sheldon appeared for the first time. "I told you not to give her the third degree."

"We weren't. We were just talking about work. It's not like we asked her what her intentions are. You aren't just using him for his body, are you?" Penny asked with a wink.

Amy was shocked into silence. Sheldon walked over to her and offered his hand. "Don't mind these two. I thought they would be nicer to my guest," Sheldon said with a look at Penny and Leonard.

Leonard felt a little bad. "Sorry, Amy. We aren't used to Sheldon going on dates," he started, but stopped when Sheldon gave him another look. Amy was confused because Sheldon was certainly good looking and charming enough to go on a date with almost any woman he wanted.

Amy took Sheldon's hand and he pulled her up. She thought he would let go when she was standing, but he didn't. Amy thought it was a little forward that he was holding her hand so soon, but maybe he was just big on touching. As long as he left it to just hand holding, she would be fine.

"Have a good night," Leonard said as they walked out the door.

"Sorry. My roommate and his girlfriend are a little immature. They enjoy mocking me because I don't go out often. Don't let them get to you because that whole display was solely for me," Sheldon said as they walked down the stairs. Amy felt a little awkward, but she could see what he meant. They seemed like fine people until he showed up.

Sheldon wouldn't tell Amy where they were going which was a little strange because she was driving. Instead, he just gave her directions until he told her to stop. They were outside a small cafe that she never would have noticed if he hadn't pointed it out. "Surprise. This is my favorite place in the city," Sheldon said with a smile.

He got out of the car to open Amy's door. Then he led her inside the cafe. It was clean and small and beautiful. It was the kind of cafe that Amy always imagined being taken to by a handsome man, and somehow that happened without her ever anticipating it. Amy blushed lightly as Sheldon pulled her chair out for her.

"We just talked about work last night. I don't really know anything about you beside that you are a brilliant scientist. That's a fine start, but why don't you tell me more about you?" Sheldon said after they ordered drinks.

"That's pretty much all there is to me. I spend a lot of time at work," Amy told him.

"I don't believe that for a second. You showed a lot of passion when we were talking. I can't believe you only dedicate that to work. What do you do on the weekends?"

Amy blushed even deeper, but kept her head up as she responded, "I read a lot. I'll read anything really. Fiction, non-fiction, poetry, prose. I love it all."

"Do you ever read comic books?" Sheldon asked.

Amy blinked before answering. It seemed like a strange question coming from him. "Not typically, but I did read The Watchmen after it was listed as one of Time's best novels of the century. Do you?"

"Comic books and science fiction are sort of my guilty pleasures," Sheldon admitted with a sly smile. Amy's breath hitched in her throat at that smile. Normally she thought those things were silly, but if Sheldon found them interesting, they might be worth a second look.

Amy found that she just wanted to learn more about Sheldon. She always felt uncomfortable talking about herself, so she was hoping that he would just tell her more about himself. He didn't. He ran through a list of questions for her. Whenever she tried to get him back to talking about himself, he would always find a way to turn the focus back on her.

She did find out that he was from Texas and that he had two siblings. She learned that he was a genius who went to college at eleven and that he had worked at Cal Tech for nearly a decade. He learned that she was an only child, what her favorite food was, the last nightmare she had (also that she had night terrors), her favorite book, her favorite movie, her favorite color, why she loved neurobiology, and a bunch of other little things. He kept her talking about herself until dessert.

"How did you do that?" Amy asked when they were walking out of the restaurant.

"How did I do what?"

"You got me to talk about myself all night. I've never done that in my life. I feel bad that I monopolized the who conversation," Amy said.

"First, I listened. That might not be something guys have done on other dates. Second, you are interesting and I enjoyed learning so much about you. Third, I'm nosy and I asked a lot of questions. It's still early. Why don't we walk around for a little while and you can ask me all the questions you want," Sheldon suggested.

Sheldon offered Amy an arm and they walked down the street lined with shops. Amy didn't have a list of questions the way Sheldon seemed to. She just asked him things that came to mind. She found out that it was his grandfather who encouraged him to pursue science. That he was scared out of his mind when he won his first real award for his work. That Leonard was the first best friend he had ever had other than his grandparents. She also somehow learned that despite his good looks, intelligence, and charisma, he had never had an actual girlfriend. Amy was so shocked by this admission that she actually stopped walking. She told him that she had never had a boyfriend, and he smiled at her. "Well, maybe we can be each other's firsts," Sheldon said. Then he realized what he said, "Oh my, that sounded bad. I'm sorry," Sheldon said, but Amy just laughed. She hadn't felt this relaxed around another person in a very long time. If ever. She didn't even mind that he was suggesting a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship on their first date.

When they got back to Amy's car, she was a little bit nervous about ending the date. Would he want a kiss? Would he want sex? Considering what they had spoken about, it seemed unlikely, but she didn't know. They got in her car and she drove him back home.

"It was a pleasure to get to know you, Amy. If you agree, perhaps we could do this again another day," Sheldon said. He seemed to mean it. That would mean her first second date ever.

"That would be lovely," Amy said. Sheldon extended his hand and Amy went to shake it, but rather, Sheldon kissed the knuckles her hand. Amy giggled, and immediately felt embarrassed about the giggle that escaped her lips.

Sheldon just smiled and got out of the car. Before he closed the door he leaned in and said, "I'm busy for most of this week, but does Friday work for you?"

Amy just nodded and Sheldon closed the door. It was Tuesday, so she had several days to be nervous about her second date with Sheldon, but she also had several days to get something new to wear. Maybe she would plan a trip to the mall the next day. If only she had someone to go with.

Sheldon unlocked the door to his apartment. Penny and Leonard were waiting for him again.

"How was the date?" Leonard asked when he came in.

"Don't you guys have anything better to do than to harass me about my date?" Sheldon asked.

"No," Penny and Leonard said at the same time.

Sheldon sighed. "It was good. We're going out again on Friday," he told them.

"Wow. A second date with Dr. Cooper. She must be special," Penny said.

"I know that you are being facetious, but I like her," Sheldon said.

"It's just that she is so... different than the other girls you've gone out with. I suppose she is sort of pretty. She also seemed nice, but a little weird," Penny said.

"Can you even hear yourself right now? You just said she is different. That's why I like her. She is a breath of fresh air, and I think if you got to know her, you would see that she is funny and bright and beautiful. I would appreciate it if you didn't judge her," Sheldon said passionately. After his speech, he walked back to his bedroom and slammed the door.

Penny went back to his room and knocked on the door. "Sweetie, I'm sorry. I'll give her another chance. Why don't you give me her number and I'll go get a cup of coffee with her or something. I'll get to know her."

Sheldon opened the door, and stared at Penny. "Really?"

"Yeah. This is the most serious I've seen you about a girl, ever. We're friends, so I'll get to know your girlfriend," Penny said.

"She's not my girlfriend. Yet," Sheldon said. "I'll ask her if it's okay to give you her phone number."

Amy was in her apartment thinking about her date with Sheldon when she got a text from him.

Penny wants your phone number so that you two can get to know each other. Is is okay if I give it to her? -S

Amy looked at her phone. Maybe she was in some sort of coma or maybe she had a brain tumor. First, a really cute, really smart guy took her on a great date, then his beautiful friend wanted to be her friend. Or at least get to know her a little bit. It seemed like the kind of story she would have told herself as a child to make herself feel better.

That's fine. I'll trust your judgment. -A

A few minutes later, Amy got another text from a strange number. She opened it anyway.

Hi. It's Penny. I was rude to you earlier, and I'm sorry. Would you like to grab a cup of coffee or go shopping tomorrow, so I can make it up to you? -P

Shopping sounds nice. I would like to find something to wear on my date with Sheldon on Friday. Would you care to help me with that? -A

Sure. Tomorrow is my day off, so I can meet you whenever you get out of work. -P

5:30 at Glendale Galleria? -A

Okay. See you then. :) -P