NOTE: Penultimate chapter, ya'll! I meant to have it up yesterday, but I think the website was having issues. Also - I began this story at the beginning of Season 7, so many of the things that have taken place regarding some of the relationships (ie, Penny/Leonard's relationship, and Wil Wheaton/Amy having scenes together again), were not taken into consideration for this. Just... keep that in mind.

Enjoy!

The Festivity Infusion Process
Chapter Five: The Countdown Proxy Osculation

"So are we going to talk about this?" Amy asked.

Sheldon looked curiously at her as they crossed the hall back to his apartment. They'd decided to leave Penny and Raj's Christmas party early... Sheldon, because he didn't want to throw off his sleeping pattern - after all, 'neutrinos don't take holidays off'; and Amy simply because she was tired and had a lot on her mind.

"Talk about what?"

"About… you know… the kiss."

"What kiss?"

"Well, the almost-kiss, I guess I should say."

"There was no 'almost-kiss'," Sheldon argued. "I gave you the choice and you said no. Ergo, there was no 'almost' to it. In the words of Yoda: 'Do or do not. There is no try'."

"But you really would have done it?"

"Yes. Raj said it was the accepted convention," He twisted his key in the lock and gave her a puzzled look. "Is that not accurate?"

Amy shrugged. How would she know? She'd never been to a Christmas party with mistletoe. Nevertheless, she'd been surprised that Sheldon had left the decision to kiss up to her. Amy thought for sure he would immediately side-step the whole thing. When he didn't, she'd taken it as a positive sign that he was becoming more comfortable with her touch. Turns out, he was just open to it because it was considered 'socially appropriate'.

She shouldn't have been let down; especially after everything she had just promised Sheldon earlier in the evening. But she was. I suppose I can't just flip a switch and have these feelings go away, she realized.

Still, Amy was determined to try to refocus her goals – shift them toward more personal objectives: independence, career progression, walking confidently in heels.

Sheldon pushed open his door, and turned to bid his girlfriend farewell for the evening.

"I still can't believe that Raj wants to host yet another party," Sheldon moaned before saying his official goodbye. "I mean… how many times can we all get together without becoming tired of one another?"

Amy's forehead wrinkled. "We all see each other practically every day anyway. How will a New Year's Eve party be any different? Besides, it's at the comic book store. You love going to the comic book store."

"Well, I think we should all give each other a chance to miss one another. I could do without seeing Howard seven days a week. And if we must get together, I don't see why we couldn't all come over here. You know - play Halo, have a Firefly marathon, break out Settlers of Catan... Why must it be a 'party'?"

"Because there's an inherent excitement as people move from one year into the next," Amy explained. "Leaving the past behind, looking forward to all the ways that you'd like to change over the next year, setting goals for yourself. It's meant to be inspirational and hopeful, Sheldon. People like to celebrate that."

He rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. People don't change."

"They can if they set their mind to it," she said, with a hint of defiance. She was certainly planning to change. And she hoped that in the future, Sheldon might be open to some change as well. In truth, they'd both already transformed so much over the years.

"Well, I don't see how switching the number that you write at the end of the date should be any catalyst for life improvement. The calendar system is man-made, Amy. Sure, it's based in science, but the end of the year doesn't have any significant social meaning. In fact, each calendar year is off by about 26 seconds. We should hardly be planning our life's major events around something so horribly inaccurate."

"I suppose you think that we should be all be calculating time by 'star dates', like in Star Wars?"

"'Star dates' are from Star Trek," he said with admonishment. "And they aren't just a factor of time, like the Gregorian calendar. Time isn't local, it's universal... so a 'star-date' also has to take your space coordinates into account. It would really be useless in an era prior to long-term human space exploration." He looked at her as though she should have known this already. "Really, Amy, don't you understand space-time and relativity at all?"

"Ok, Sheldon," Amy said, giving up. "Forget I said anything about it." She shifted her purse strap over her shoulder. "If you don't want to go to Raj's party, you don't have to go. I told you earlier that I wasn't going to ask you to come to these things with me. So if you would rather stay home and play a board game… go ahead."

"You don't want me to go?"

"I didn't say that," Amy pointed out. "I said you don't have to go. Whether or not I want you there is irrelevant. What I want is for you to do what you want."

Sheldon studied her a moment. "And you promise you won't be upset if I don't go?" he asked skeptically. "I know how you women-folk are. I grew up with a twin sister. One minute it's 'Shelly, can you set up my TiVo?' and the next minute I get a kick in an unpleasant place for scheduling multiple recordings of Doctor Who."

Amy shook her head. "I'm not going to kick your genitals, Sheldon."

"Well, if you get any ideas... just remember that you still haven't used up all your Cooper Coupons from the last time you changed your mind about something like this. Try using those before resorting to physical violence."

"I'm saving them for a rainy day," she grinned.

He considered her in silence for a moment and then nodded.

"Very well," he said. "I won't go, then. Thank you. Catan isn't a one-player game, so that's off the table... but I would very much like to re-watch Firefly. Ooo - or I could practice my theremin! This will be fun!"

Amy couldn't help but feel disappointed. But – she had given him the option. From now on, she wouldn't be pushing him to do anything with her. If he truly wanted to spend time with her, then he would have chosen to come.

"Ok," she said, forcing a smile. "I guess I'll see you later."

"Ok. Goodbye." He paused a moment before adding, "You really are a very good girlfriend, Amy."

She coyly bit her lip. "You're a good boyfriend, too." The best boyfriend... most of the time.

He smiled and softly clicked the door closed, leaving Amy standing in the hallway alone. She could still hear the laughter coming from Penny's apartment – where the rest of the gang had decided to carry the fun on into Christmas day by playing darts. Most of the others had been quite tipsy by the time Amy and Sheldon had chosen to leave.

As she walked down the stairs, she relived the almost-kiss in her mind and pondered what it meant for their progress as a couple - it would really take a lot of effort for her not to blow the dust off of her marriage projection chart that she had stored under her bed to add in these recent developments. But, still, she couldn't help wondering where they might be at the end of next year.

She thought about the upcoming New Year's Eve party and the festivities that she counted herself lucky to have been a part of his holiday season. She thought of her friends, and about her own future and the new doors that were opening for her at work.

Regardless of what Sheldon believed, the end of the year really did have meaning.

Raj spared no expense for the New Year's Eve party at the comic book store. Pop music filled the room, and a disco ball hung from the center of the ceiling. Dozens of balloons and '2014' labeled banners littered the walls. Several bat-signals were staged strategically around the shop. They flashed intermittently in various colors, creating a very nerdy 'club-like' atmosphere. All in all, it was the perfect mix of comics and a traditional New Year's Eve party.

Amy couldn't help but think that Sheldon would have actually enjoyed this gathering... had he decided to come, that is.

"The place looks great, Raj," Leonard said, patting his friend on the back.

"I thought of everything," Raj beamed with pride. "I call this drink The Green Lantern." He passed a few martini glasses around to the gang, then raised his glass in a toast and took a large swig of the green beverage.

"This is just a Grasshopper," Penny said as she studied the drink in her hands.

"Hey!" Raj snapped. "It's The Green Lantern. I don't tell you what to call the food on the Cheesecake Factory menu."

Penny rolled her eyes, and walked away to find Bernadette. The rest of their group dispersed into smaller cliques, leaving Amy alone by the snack table to analyze the crowd.

There were many people in attendance that she didn't know, including an interesting-looking gentleman whom Leonard had dubbed 'Captain Sweatpants'. Leonard seemed surprised that the man had managed to find a date for the evening – a woman wearing brightly colored spandex and legwarmers. There's someone for everyone, I suppose, Amy thought.

Wil Wheaton had also decided to join the party as well, and Amy frowned when she saw him heading her way across the floor.

"You're Sheldon's girlfriend, right?" Wil asked.

"Yes," She replied curtly.

"I don't think we really got off on the right foot," he said. "I'm sorry about that."

She eyed him for a moment, but then gave him a reluctant smile. She didn't care much for Wil, or the hold he seemed to have over her boyfriend, but she was willing to give him a shot. New year, new start, she thought.

"Its okay," she said. "It's just hard seeing Sheldon admire someone else so much."

"Well, you know, I was Sheldon's mortal enemy for awhile," he said. "So I'm pretty sure we could eventually get along too. Even though I know I'm not your favorite person."

She smiled again. "Thank you, Wil. And for the record: You're not so bad." She held out her hand as an offer of peace, and he took it happily.

"Where is Sheldon tonight, by the way?" he asked.

"Oh, he's at home. He had some important matters to attend to." Like watching imaginary space travelers on a canceled television program. Surely it was canceled for a reason?

No, no, She reminded herself. I gave him the option. Don't get mad, Amy.

Wil nodded. "He certainly likes to keep busy. I'm surprised he let you come here alone, though."

"What do you mean?"

"He's very protective of you. He almost punched me for disrespecting you, you know."

"No, I didn't know," she said with surprise. Her heart fluttered. She certainly would have liked to see Sheldon's scrawny, yet manly arms readied to jab Wil in the face. The thought sent a shiver down her spine and her body noticeably quaked a bit. Wil raised an eyebrow at her, but was immediately distracted by slap on the back from Stuart. The rest of the gang wasn't far behind him, blowing noisemakers and being all-around obnoxious.

"There you are, Wil!" Stuart greeted his semi-famous friend.

"Hi Stuart. Thanks for inviting me."

"Hey - where's that girl you were telling me about Stuart?" Raj asked, haphazardly throwing an arm around his friend's shoulders.

"What girl?"

"The only girl you've told me about this past week. The one you met in that online singles forum?"

"Oh… that girl. Yeah. Something came up."

"Oh really? That's too bad."

"Yeah… apparently the photo she used on her profile of her dressed in Spiderman cosplay was in fact because she is a he. Apparently Kelly can be a guy's name too." Stuart shrugged. "Who knew?"

Everyone looked around at each other awkwardly.

"It's okay, though," Stuart said, in an attempt to lighten the mood. "He at least bought me a peppermint latte before our date was over. Pretty nice guy, actually." He looked away deep in thought.

"So Ames," Penny leaned into Amy's side, almost falling over in the process. She'd already had much more to drink than Amy believed possible in an hour's time, and Amy had to use all her strength to hold her friend up. "Where's that sexy boyfriend of yours?"

"Oh, he's not going to be coming," Amy said. She was really getting tired of explaining Sheldon's absence to everyone. "He had some things to catch up on at home." She grinned a bit too broadly at Penny – an overcompensation to prove she was okay with her boyfriend not being there.

"Awww, that's a shame," Penny pouted her lip. "I was really looking forward to seeing a Shamy kiss at midnight!"

Amy shrugged at her friend, then pushed her into Leonard's welcoming arms.

"I don't have anyone to kiss at midnight, either," Stuart pointed out. "Mr. Peppermint Latte was a bit of a let down."

"I'm sorry, Stuart." Amy patted him on the back. She really did feel bad for him. He was a great catch. She was confident that someone would see it someday. However, she did feel relieved that she wouldn't be the only one kiss-less as they rang in the New Year.

"I meant… I could give you a kiss at midnight. As friends, I mean," Stuart said. "That is, if you think Sheldon would be okay with it?"

Sheldon would almost certainly not be okay with that. He had snapped at Stuart simply for complementing her clothing the other day.

"I don't know…" Amy danced around an outright refusal. She didn't want to disappoint Stuart. He'd always been so kind to her before, but she didn't want to make Sheldon jealous either.

"I know it wouldn't be the same as having Sheldon here," Stuart said morosely, as he looked at the ground, kicking his toe on his heel. "I just thought… since we're both alone and all…"

Geez, he's pitiful. But in a good way, she thought as she watched the man rub his arm nervously. Oh, heck, why not?

"Ok, Stuart," Amy smiled meekly. "If we kiss on the cheek, I think that would be okay."

"Really?" His eyes met hers and grew wide.

"Er… yeah. I mean… if Sheldon can't be here… you're an acceptable stand-in."

Stuart nodded. "That was my nickname in school - 'Stand-in Stuart'. That's because I was always picked last for stuff." He sighed. "The Sheldon's of the world have it made. They get their choice of the ladies, too. Your boyfriend really lucked out, you know."

Amy blushed. Sheldon did, in fact, have his pick of any woman he wanted. And who wouldn't want to be with someone as intelligent, as focused, and as handsome as her boyfriend? But he had chosen her. The man who wanted nothing to do with women in the past… the man who is so adamant about the importance of his career… had chosen to dip is toe into the murky pond of romance with her.

What is so special about me? Why did he choose me? Amy wondered.

"Thank you," she told Stuart with all the sincerity in the world. She had needed to hear that from someone.

Stuart smiled.

"Is everybody ready for the countdown?" Raj yelled, and the crowd erupted in cheerful applause. Everyone looked at the clock on the wall, which had been ticking down the time to midnight. Only 15 seconds left.

Amy looked around the store once again. At the beginning of the night, she would have bet that Sheldon would have eventually turn up – but he was nowhere to be seen. She noticed that it had begun to rain outside - he probably wouldn't risk leaving his apartment in that weather.

"10…9… 8…" The crowd loudly counted in unison.

She glanced around once more, hopeful that the tall, lanky man might burst through the door in a scene that would rival When Harry Met Sally.

"7…6…5…"

Quit it, Amy. He's not coming.

She forced her eyes away from the door and turned her attention to Stuart. With a half-smile, she took a step toward him.

"4…3…2…1!"

Stuart leaned forward and gave her a light kiss on her cheek, and she returned the friendly smooch on his own cheek. They gave each other a hug, then inched away from one another as red and yellow lightning bolt shaped confetti began falling from the ceiling. How did Raj manage that? And who's going to clean it up?

"Thanks, Amy." He said softly, with a sideways smile. "I hope Sheldon won't be upset."

Amy waved his comment away. "He'll be okay." She looked around at the other couples.

Penny and Leonard's lips were locked in the most romantic of kisses that Amy had ever witnessed in person, Howard and Bernadette were dancing slowly together, and Captain Sweatpants and Lady Legwarmers were at each other like animals in heat. Way to go, Captain Sweatpants, Amy thought, though her face was distorted in semi-disgust at the pair.

There was a gentle tap on her shoulder. Sheldon? Her heart sped up as she spun around, ending up face to face with Wil Wheaton.

Her smile quickly faded. "Oh. Hi Wil."

"Hi Amy, I just wanted to catch you before I went to George Takei's party. Could you tell Sheldon that I have that signed action figure he wanted?"

Amy nodded quickly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Yes, of course."

"Thanks! Happy New Year." he waved goodbye and turned to leave, pulling his hooded jacket over his head as he walked out of the comic book store and down the sidewalk in the rain.

Amy mirrored his wave and blew her kazoo softly to herself.

"Happy New Year."

NOTE: I would like to point out that (while I do enjoy Star Trek) I don't know much about the way 'star dates' are calculated. However, I did research the topic to quite an extent. So, any Trekkies out there - if what I have in my story is incorrect, I apologize. I really did do quite of big of digging to make it as close to the truth as possible. I always try to do that if I am unfamiliar with a topic. I hope it's close enough to satisfy the Star Trek fans... but I know how nit-picky fandom can be. ;o) (I'm that way with BBT fandom).

Thank you again for all the reviews that I received on the last chapter. I appreciate them all. Please, if you have any constructive criticism, don't be afraid to send it my way! I love hearing it all! :o)

Only one more chapter left!