A/N: Here's the latest chapter, luvs. I apologize if this one is a bit shorter than the others, but I'm trying to get through the last of my finals. Thank you all so much for the reviews, they were lovely and made me wee writer's heart go pitter patter :P

Please keep them coming and keep an eye out for the next chapter next week!

Copper slid back into the driver's seat a few moments after purchasing her hard won game. The time between her fleeing of Sheldon's well-intentioned, yet flustering embrace and walking out to her car had given her the chance to shake off some of that fluster. Her head flopped back against the black leather headrest as she let out a heavy breath. Grey eyes looked up at the roof of the car without really seeing it.

The universe was out to get her; there was no other damned explanation for the maddness that was surrounding her today.

She let out a groan, her palm connecting with her forehead with a soft, but audible slap. First the towel incident and then this shelf debaucle. It was enough to drive any woman batty and God help her, she was only human.

Oh, jiminy crickets chirping in a chorus.

She sat bolt upright, an expression of horror flashing across her features. Since when did human urges apply to Sheldon, much less how she saw him?

Not good, she thought, slapping her forehead again, not good at all. Oh great goddess of denial, swallow me now...

Satisfied that she could push the infernal jumble of emotions, suspicions, and general confusion to the back of her mind for a later date, preferably at the end of enternity, she reached back as she spotted the good doctor striding towards the vehicle.

She let out a yelp when she leaned back to grab the seat belt and her fingers met sunbaked, white hot metal. Cursing under her breath, she sucked on the wounded digit as Sheldon folded his tall frame into the passenger seat.

"Careful, the metal is really, really, hot," she told him around the finger in her mouth.

He glanced her, but nodded and gingerly buckled himself in. Wary now, Copper started the car and kept her hands near the bottom of the steering wheel, where the sun had not left a scalding reminder of its heat. She checked her mirrors and eased out of the parking space. As they pulled out back onto the busy highway, Sheldon flipped through her cd's, choosing a decorative green one and it was smoothly inserted into the player. Soft, Celtic sounds began to emit from the speakers and Copper felt herself beginning to relax again. Her eyes darted down to her burnt finger and she could tell that a water blister was going to form by tomorrow.

"You should put some ice on that when we get back, otherwise it will blister, which will be far more painful than the initial tactile contact with the belt buckle," Sheldon observed and she nodded in agreement.

"I planned to, but thank you for the suggestion," she replied politely and noted that he had a tiny, pleased smile.

Copper resisted the urge to roll her eyes, but she allowed herself the grin. Smoothly changing lanes, she got off on their exit, her fingers waving in time to the music. She felt Sheldon's eyes on her and she glanced over at him briefly.

"What's up?"

"That's the very question I was considering posing to you," he answered with a slight gesture towards her still moving digits.

"Oh, I don't know, it's just something I do, I suppose. I could claim that it's a method of learning the musical rhythms of the songs in order to one day play them myself."

Her eyes met his for a fraction of a second, biting her lip to hold her laughter in. He was regarding her with a very serious expression.

"I hear a 'but' coming."

"Aren't we the observant physicist today?" she teased gently as she began to back up in order to parallel park.

"I am always observant, thank you very much," was the prickly response, his tone clearly conveying his displeasure at her jibe.

"Of course," she murmured absently, her concentration focused on her mirrors.

There was a significant pause before she finally slid the gear shift into park and turned off the ignition. Tossing her keys idly in the air before catching them deftly again, Copper half-turned in the seat to face him.

"But," she continued with a small smile,"it's just me, enjoying myself."

"I see."

Copper met his gaze, a crooked smile still curving her lips.

"I never doubted you, Dr. Cooper," she said, throwing him a mock salute and opening her door to step out.

Sheldon frowned at her tone and facial expression. He was uncertain what exactly she was trying to convey at that moment, but he set his bewilderment to the side for the moment. For the most part, he was just content that she had gotten over her embaressment from that morning. And her strange behavior this afternoon when he-

A thought struck him as he held the front door for her. He had acted on instinct, trying to keep her from breaking her fool neck. But, when he had asked her if she was alright, she had been frightfully flushed-and fidgity. Come to think of it, the memory made him want to flush.

She had wriggled against him like a serpent, one that had a wondefully shaped bottom that he had clearly felt against-

He quashed that thought almost as soon as it had formed. Sheldon was also reluctant to analyze the biological triggers that had responded to the physical stimuli of her body pressed-

Sheldon shook his head roughly, a scowl beginning to cause furrows to appear on his brow. They were rounding the second flight of stairs as his mind worked. Enough of this infernal nonsense, he thought, it was far too distracting and he needed to focus.

As they stepped up to the landing and came to her door, Copper paused.

"Would you like to come in for a bit? I have a Nintendo 64, if you'd care to try out your new game," she offered and Sheldon considered the invitation.

It was unexpected, but not unwelcomed. It could also work to his advantage, he mused. Finally, he nodded.

"I accept your generous invitation."

Copper flashed him a grin and it made his gut jerk in an odd fashion and he rubbed a hand over his stomach. Thankfully, she had turned to unlock her door and hadn't detected the move to ask him uncomfortable questions. She jiggled the key a bit and Sheldon stepped a little to the side to of her to see what the difficulty was. Copper glanced up at him as she twisted the little piece of metal back and forth, biting her lip at the effort. The motion immediately caught his attention, the tiny movement of her small, even teeth against her bottom lip fascinating to him and he unconsciously shifted just a little bit closer to her.

"The damned thing- won't- budge," she mumbled, bracing her hip against the door in an effort to push it open with her weight.

"Here, allow me," he said, surprising himself with the slightly deeper timbre of his voice and the slow drawl of his words.

He also noticed that Copper seemed to freeze for approximately half a second before she nodded and stepped back. He assumed her previous position and she stood where he had just been. Sheldon bumped into the door as he twisted the key and he felt the wood give a little. A couple more tries, however, and they were still in the hallway.

"My turn again," Copper spoke in a light tone, her hand hovering near his and he withdrew, brushing her shoulder with his arm as he did so.

"Stupid door," she muttered under her breath as she tackled it again, pushing curls out of her eyes before looking up at him, "lean against it while I do, maybe it'll give then."

"Alrighty."

He pressed the side of his body against the door just beside her.

"Ok, on my word, we'll push. Ready?"

Copper glanced at him and he nodded. She turned the key and he watched her shoulders tense.

"Alright, go!"

They pushed and the door gave, too quickly.

Their feet tangled together and Copper gave out a yelp. Her balance was more off than his, since his hands were still on the door. His mind processed the situation at light speed, his arm sliding around her waist and using their momentum to twist them. It was almost like a dance move as he pulled her to him and turned, her back coming against the wall with more force than he had intended or calculated. He released her in time to catch himself against the wall, his palms smacking into the sheet-rock.

When he looked down into her face to see if she was alright, she was staring up at him with wide grey eyes.

"That-that was an impressive show of phsyic's mastery, Dr. Cooper," she admitted quietly, lifting her arm in a weak gesture and a letting out a small, breathy laugh.

"I'm amazed that you were expecting anything less from a genius," he replied, the corner of his lips twitching.

"Oh, how could I forget about your impressive intellect? My apologizes, good sir," she teased and Sheldon shook his head at her.

"I suppose if it is a sincere apology, I can accept it."

"Sincere, eh?"

There was something in her tone that caused butterflies to erupt in his belly. That devilish glint in her gaze did nothing to alleviate the sensation.

"Must we repeat the obvious, Dr. McIntyre?" He asked the question around his suddenly dry mouth as her head tilted at him, her small pink tongue darting out to wet her lips.

Intriguing.

"Only because I like to be absolutely certain of the nature of the statement made," she answered in a soft voice, her drawl becoming as pronounced as his and the sound was unbelieveably pleasant to his ears.

"That is very a sound, scientific and logical approach," he conceded.

Her eyes were an impossibly clear grey color, but they held a soft look, like water or maybe rain clouds? He couldn't decide.

"Is it one worthy of Mr. Spock, in your distinguished opinion, Dr. Cooper?"

Why did it seem like that question was held a meaning that he couldn't put his finger on?

"I think Mr. Spock would indeed have been pleased with that sort of reasoning applied to a verbal discussion, Dr. McIntyre."

Copper lifted her head from the wall. Sheldon felt his heart hammering against his ribs at her proximity and he caught her scent again.

"Logic is indeed the beginning of wisdom, as he once said."

She was quoting Spock? Out of all the literary tropes, metaphors, and verisimilitudes she could have drawn upon, she picked the science officer of The Enterprise? The notion caused a strange series of reactions that, for the rest of his life, Sheldon would never be able to fully understand.

His eyes searched hers for any mockery or insincerity, but he could discern no such thing in those crystalline depths.

But then her lips tentatively met his and all logical, methodical modes of thinking promptly left him.

It was soft, brief, like a raindrop had fallen against his lips. Sheldon couldn't rightly explain what was happening, but he knew that his lips tingled where they had met hers, his chest felt tight, and something inside him felt like it just...clicked into place.

It was slow, hesitant, then their lips were connecting more fully. The sensation was akin to little bursts of static electricity and Sheldon was becoming hyper aware of his body- and hers. Her fingers were ghosting up his chest and he bit back the sound that was building in his throat, his own hands sliding from the wall to settle carefully on her waist and he felt her shiver lightly beneath his touch. Sheldon felt like his entire body was on overload and he shifted closer to her, her lips gliding silkily against his, the movements gentle.

They parted when the need for air became too insistent to ignore any longer. Copper's breathing was a little erratic, mirroring his own. As the haze she had caused to fall over his mental faculties began to lift, he felt a wave of panic wash over him, making his throat feel tight and his pulse to race even faster than before. Concerns over significance, friendship, and most importantly, hygiene, threatened to overwhelm him.

Copper must have seen it in his expression because she very slowly lifted her hands from their resting place on his chest.

"Sheldon, breathe for me, alright? You're thinking too much, too fast and your head is going to implode if you keep it up."

He shook his head in disagreement and she flashed him a reassuring smile.

"Well, I guess that means Mr. Spock no longer respects me for my logical capabilities."

It was enough to make him snort a bit and he felt himself relax, allowing her to diffuse the situation for the moment. His first reaction had been to run, to find comfort in the familiar; this was most definately not the familiar. Her quiet acceptance had put him at ease for the moment. Perhaps this development, unexpected as it may have been, could further his goals in the long run. It didn't jeopardize his plan in any fashion, at least, though it had advanced further than he had anticipated. Perhaps he could turn this event to his advantage.

"Your methods are unsophisticated and a bit crass, but they achieve the desired effect, I will admit," he replied, his internal assessment having taken the amount of time that she had blinked her luminous grey eyes up at him.

"Translated as crude but effective in the common tongue," she joked as he straightened away from her with a clearing of his throat.

"I believe you had mentioned that you had a Nintendo 64 console at your disposal?"

Copper had her legs crossed as she sat in the large chair that sat perpendicular to the couch, one hand rubbing at her chilled toes as the other marked errors on a freshman's paper submission in purple ink. When she finished, she took the opportunity to study the lanky physicist playing Rayman on her living room couch. She had acted purely on impluse earlier that afternoon, but it hadn't seemed to have had any negative consequences that she had been able to percieve as of yet.

Yet was, of course, the operative word.

He was much more at ease than she had expected him to be. Copper couldn't decide if that made her feel better or if it made her suspicious. She supposed it was the latter. Sheldon had been acting out of character, from what she knew of him, when he had accepted that kiss without complaint. His initial reaction when they had parted had been something she had expected, even anticipated once her head had cleared.

Her fingers traced over the contours of her lips. Ye gads, that kiss had made a thrill chase through her whole body. She wasn't sure she was prepared to think about what it might have felt like if things had progressed any further than that. Not that she had expected it to; it was doubtful that Sheldon really had much of a concept about how such encounters worked.

Oh, he knew the mechanics of it, she had no doubts about that, but she was uncertain what kind of experience he had about those mechanics in motion. Copper settled back into the plushness of the chair, uncurling her legs and throwing them over one arm of the chair, letting them dangle. A finger tapped against her chin as she stared at the television screen, not really seeing it.

"That is a very contemplative look for someone who should be concentrating on the expressions of the composition skills of her students, don't you think?"

His question brought her out of her reverie with a small smile.

"You don't seem to think that I could be considering a particularly eloquent and thoughtfully written example of those skills."

Sheldon snorted, throwing a lum energy ball at an unfortunate pirate.

"I do not believe that a response to that is necessary for you to understand my viewpoint on the matter."

Copper chuckled, bouncing one of her feet idly in the air as she folded her arms behind her head.

"Perhaps you're right. And to answer your question, I don't think one can have an expression that is too contemplative, on any subject, to be frank."

"I suppose that could be true. It speaks well of you that you are in the habit of deep contemplation."

Copper raised a brow, biting her lip to keep herself from grinning.

"Dr. Sheldon Cooper? Was that a compliment?"

Sheldon paused long enough to glance at her curiously.

"Of course, what else could it have been?"

Copper didn't reply, just shook her head and swung her legs around to stand up. She stretched her arms high and cracked her back with a sigh. Then she padded over to the kitchen, opening the fridge and grabbing a can of coke. As she popped the tab, it opened with a hiss and she took a long swig. When she lowered her hand, she noticed that Sheldon had been watching her with an intense look before his gaze slid away.

Interesting.

She looked over at her softly glowing clock and gestured to it as she walked back to stand next to her chair.

"It's getting late, Sheldon. I don't want you to think that I'm chasing you out, but I know that you need your sleep."

He looked down at his watch and nodded.

"You're right. Thank you for being so considerate, Copper."

When he looked up again, she was surprised by the genuine smile on his lips. It flustered her.

"I-well-your welcome, Sheldon," she replied simply, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly and following him to her door.

He turned to her as he opened the door.

"I have truly enjoyed today, Copper. I hope we will share another like it in the future," his tone made it sound like a question, so she nodded with a crooked grin.

"I would like that, Sheldon, you're good company."

He gave her another of those rare, honest smiles and it caused a curious, warm fluttering in her stomach. They bid one another good night and Copper carefully locked her door. It wasn't until later, when she was settling back into her pillows, that a thought struck her like a thunderbolt. Jumpin' Jehosaphat, had she spent the last two days on dates with Sheldon? What was more unsettling was that she couldn't decide exactly how she felt about it. She pulled the covers up to her chin and bit her lip. Then she buried her nose into the comforter and let out a groan.

Apparently the goddess of denial was no longer going to be taking her phone calls.