After Penny had cried herself out, a strange, achy calm came over her. There were no more secrets now. Maybe Sheldon did what he'd needed to do in order to process his feelings. It wasn't the first time he'd run away when sudden change had proved too overwhelming.

Finally, as the sun was setting, her phone chimed. She grabbed her phone eagerly and found she had a text from Sheldon: a simple message instructing her to meet him at an address in Las Vegas. The place wasn't far from where she was, so she walked the few blocks and found herself away from the crowds and noise of the strip, in front of a tiny wedding chapel. Steeling her courage, she pushed open the doors and went inside.

"Hello?" she called out.

A tiny, white-haired, hunched-over woman appeared. "Why, there you are!" she exclaimed delightedly. She actually clapped her hands with excitement as she walked over to Penny. Taking her by the elbow, the elderly woman introduced herself as Violet and said that she and her husband, an ordained minister, had been performing weddings in this very chapel for over forty years. Penny smiled and nodded politely, but her stomach was trying to tie itself in knots. Where was Sheldon, and why had he brought her here?

Violet ushered her back to a tiny office, where to Penny's great relief she saw Sheldon, sitting on a metal folding chair in front of a desk overflowing with papers.

"I was worried about you," she said softly.

He didn't turn around. "Come look at this," he said. He had something on the table in front of him which seemed to be absorbing all his attention. Penny came to his side cautiously. When she saw what he was holding, she gasped. It was a photo album, open to a page that showed a picture of the two of them. Sheldon was in a tux, she was wearing that cream-colored dress, and they were gazing lovingly into each other's eyes. She hardly recognized the expression on Sheldon's face in the photo; she had no idea he could look so tender or so happy.

"Oh, look how adorable the two of you were," Violet cooed. "So in love. I knew you'd be back for your pictures. We get a lot of people coming through here, and many of them don't take marriage very seriously. But you… well, you couldn't take your eyes off each other. He held your hand the whole time you were choosing your wedding package."

Penny glanced up at her questioningly.

"It's all right, dearie. I could tell that the two of you had overindulged, but I don't judge. And the joy that was shining out of your eyes wasn't the kind that came from strong drink, let me tell you. No, when Robert and I - that's my husband, you know, Robert - when we watched the two of you leave, I said to him, now there's a couple that will someday be telling this story to their grandchildren. They're not one of those flash-in-the-pan couples. What they have is true love," She paused, smiling beatifically at them. When she got no response, she said, "I'll give you two lovebirds a few moments to look over your pictures. I'll be back later to see if you need anything else."

Penny watched her leave, and then sank down into the chair next to Sheldon's. She couldn't take her eyes off the photos as he flipped through the album. There was a picture of him standing behind her as she posed in her wedding dress in front of a full-length mirror. He had one arm wrapped around her middle and was bending down as if he was about to kiss her cheek. He turned the page. There they were, holding hands, Penny beaming and gazing up adoringly at him. The next photo was of their first kiss as a married couple. Sheldon examined the picture closely. He actually touched the page as if he could somehow tactilely connect to that moment. He studied the way his hands had cradled Penny, pulling her closer, while her arms were around his neck. The last picture was of them standing side by side, smiling: Dr. and Mrs. Cooper.

"What do you see when you look at those pictures?" Penny asked softly.

He seemed to know what she was asking, and for once, didn't give her a literal answer or lecture her for the imprecision of her words.

"I look… happy," he said in a low voice. Stroking the photo, he asked, "Did I really want this? Is there some part of me that has a suppressed, albeit illogical, desire for love? I know if anyone were to suggest such a thing to me, I would laugh in their face, but the evidence is right here in front of me."

"Sweetie, there aren't many people that you care about, but the ones that you do, you feel very strongly about, even if you have a hard time admitting it," she told him.

"You do not seem to have the same perspective," he said slowly. "Yet you told me that my friendship was of paramount importance to you."

"That's right."

"Do you remember… did you want to marry me?"

She blushed, wondering if somehow in her subconscious, she had known this bond existed between them. Over the past few months, she had gradually come to see him as somewhat more than just a friend. "I remember kissing you," she said slowly. "And then it turned into something more. I remember the feel of your hands on me. You wanted me, too."

He frowned slightly and searched her face. His gaze dropped to her mouth and lingered there. "I kissed you back?"

She nodded. He reached out hesitantly and touched her lips with two fingers. After a moment, Penny took his hand in hers and then slowly leaned toward him. He held still, neither welcoming nor rejecting her as she pressed her lips to his.

When she pulled back, he looked bewildered. "I don't remember any of it," he said in a low voice. "And yet if we did get married, I can't think of anything more logical."

Her jaw dropped. "What do you mean? We're total opposites. You don't even like me sometimes!" This was the crux of the matter: whatever her feelings for him, she was convinced that he really only cared about himself. She couldn't imagine anyone less likely than Sheldon to be in a successful relationship. After all, he hadn't even been able to make things work with Amy, who was so much like him.

"It's true that we have little in common," he replied. "But you had no more in common with Leonard. Unlike him, I have the ability to stand up to you, which you have said you find more attractive than a clingy, insecure mate such as he. As for not liking you, I continually allow you greater access to my life than anyone else. You know more about me than even Leonard does, and you're the only person who breaks my rules with impunity. You are the only person I trusted with my secret when I thought I had ruined my life by marrying a prostitute. You are the only one I can rely on to help me understand people and… and feelings. I used to think I was well aware of my own emotional state, but I don't know how to tell people that I… I care about them."

He looked down. Penny followed his gaze and realized that they were still holding hands, just like Violet had said they did the night they got married. With a sinking feeling, she pulled her hand away and got to her feet, pacing in the cramped office space. "You know we can't stay married, right?" she asked, hating herself for having to be the one to say it. "Even if we do have feelings for each other. We've never even been on a date. It's crazy."

Sheldon jerked at the word "crazy", which she belatedly realized was all too similar to calling him insane. "So the fact that I just admitted I have feelings for you means nothing?" he asked in a low voice. "Or the fact that you made a vow to be my wife until death do us part?"

Penny felt the color flooding into her cheeks. "It's not that simple."

He hesitated, and then asked, "Is it Leonard? Perhaps you still retain feelings for him?"

She shook her head slowly. "No… but I'm not in love with you either."

"And you're certain that you could never feel that way… of course not." He looked away.

Penny felt a pang of guilt. She had no idea how to handle the fact that Sheldon seemed to want to stay married to her. "I don't know," she whispered. This was torture, to go from finding out she had feelings for him to breaking his heart in a matter of minutes.

He looked back at her, watching her intently. "Both of my parents had their flaws. They got married because my mother found out she was pregnant with George Junior, but they stayed together through any number of difficulties, even when divorce must have been an easier option." He paused. "I don't want our marriage to fail without making some attempt to salvage it. Perhaps we can agree on a compromise."

Her eyebrows shot up. Now she knew he was serious. He hated the word "compromise" only slightly less than he hated the word "insane". She paced a few more times. Every time she looked over at him, his face was solemn, but there was an expression in his eyes that she had never seen before: pleading.

What if she gave him a chance? It sounded… well, crazy, but she couldn't shake the feeling that they could be really good together. She looked back at their wedding photo. "What kind of compromise?" she heard herself saying.

"I suggest that we do not annul the marriage. Instead, we will go back home and attempt to enter into a dating-type relationship. If we are successful, we simply remain married. If not, we can always get an annulment later."

Still she hesitated. "What about sex?" she asked in low voice. "And kissing and hugging and everything else that goes along with a relationship. I thought you never wanted any of that stuff."

He frowned thoughtfully. "It's true that I was never interested in the mindless pursuit of coitus, or the dating rituals that seem to accompany said pursuit. Marriage would require a paradigm shift, but in many ways, I have already had to time to contemplate the possible ramifications of my actions. I believed that were all unpleasant in the extreme. I never considered a scenario in which I might not want an annulment, but I find myself in that situation now." He sighed. "I hate change. I don't cope well with it, but if you are willing to experience that paradigm shift along with me, I think it would alleviate much of the stress of the situation."

She blinked at him. "So you really want to stay married to me?" she whispered.

He nodded slowly. "There is no one else who has ever cared for me as you do. No one else whom I have allowed to touch me or be in my room… or my bed. You're the only person I've ever willingly embraced. You're the only person with whom I've ever been intimate. That may not mean much to you, but it does to me. So if it was my choice, I would choose to remain married to you."

She let go of his hand and took the photo album from his lap. Placing it carefully on the table, she stood in front of him. She put her arms around his neck and slowly lowered herself onto his lap. "How does this make you feel?" she asked.

He swallowed hard. "My heart rate has accelerated. I'm starting to perspire. Perhaps I need to go see a doctor."

She smiled at him, and he knew he was being ridiculous. Instead of making fun of him or scolding, she leaned against him. "Put your arms around me," she suggested. He did so hesitantly, and she turned so she could snuggle against his chest. After a few moments, she felt his hand move and begin to stroke her hair. She let out a sound that was half moan and half sigh. "What about now?"

There was a long pause before he answered. "Extraordinary. I find myself highly reluctant to have you vacate this position." He stroked her hair, her shoulders, down her arms and across her back. "There is a sense of belonging that you engender by your presence. Mine… my wife," he said in a hushed voice.

The thought flashed through Penny's mind that she should be freaking out. She had panicked and dumped Leonard shortly after he said he loved her. For her other neighbor - the crazy one - to do the same should have sent her running for the hills. But all she could think about was how devastated she had been at the thought of losing him, and how good it felt to have his arms around her. When she believed she'd slept with him in a alcohol-induced stupor, she never wondered why she had chosen him or found the idea of having sex with him repugnant. Instead, her only thought had been how she might have hurt him or damaged their friendship.

"I would like to attempt something," Sheldon said after a few moments of holding her. She looked at him inquiringly. Slowly, he slid his hands up to her shoulders and then upward until he cradled her head in both hands. He bent toward her, so gradually that it took all of her willpower to wait for him. The kiss was just the smallest brush of his lips along hers, but then in a moment, he repeated the gesture, lingering just a little more. Penny wrapped her arms around his neck and made soft noises of encouragement as he kissed her again. It was still only a closed mouth kiss, and yet it was the most romantic one Penny could ever remember. Neither of them noticed as the door opened a few inches and then closed again with a gentle click.

"Well, Violet?" Robert said, looking up from his desk. He was sorting through some paperwork.

"They were kissing," she said, her face creasing into a thousand tiny lines as she smiled. "I think we've won this one, thank heavens." She dropped into the chair in front of the old oak desk and shook her head. "What's wrong with young people nowadays? They complain about every little thing. If they come in drunk as two skunks, wanting to get hitched, there's no pleasing them. You can't turn them away, or they'll cause a scene. Remember that biker who punched you right in the nose?"

"That was years ago," her husband said soothingly.

Violet went on as if he hadn't spoken. "On the other hand, if we perform the ceremony and they change their minds once they sober up, they give us bad reviews online, or worse, try to sue." She shook her head reproachfully. "It looks I convinced these two that they were really in love. Maybe they'll even stay married. I can't bring myself to care anymore. We're getting too old for this business, Robert."

Her husband looked up from his paperwork and smiled at her. "You just keep telling yourself that, Vi. We could've retired anytime in the last fifteen years. You're the one who keeps saying, just one more year. You pretend to complain about the business, but I think you get all sappy over every one of those couples that walk through our doors."

Violet's face softened, and she smiled. "Not every couple." She reached out and patted her husband's hand. "Just the ones that remind me of us when we were young."