That night, Leonard, Howard and Raj were watching television at the apartment. They were flicking through the channels, when Sheldon came shuffling out of the bedroom, shrouded in a blanket from head to toe, like a mummy. The fringe of his hair was disheveled and he was looking a little dazed.
"Hello Sheldon," Leonard said.
"Hello."
"How are you feeling?" Raj asked.
He peered out from his blanket, "Like I was freeze-dried, in a radiant vacuum."
"Well, look on the bright side, Sheldon. Now you can get that extra part on 'The Walking Dead' you've always wanted," Howard said.
He frowned, "They tried to poison me," he said.
"I'm sure they didn't try to poison you, Sheldon," said Leonard.
"The 'Loaded Baguette' Conspiracy," Howard joked.
"I'll have you know, I've requested a full FSIS inspection," Sheldon said giving him a look.
"So you should," Leonard said, "We're just kidding around."
Sheldon then shuffled to the kitchen, "I barely escaped with my life, if it hadn't been for Penny I hate to consider the possible outcome," he said dramatically.
"I heard she was called in, to pick you up," Leonard said casually.
Sheldon nodded, opening the fridge and looking inside.
"So, how is she coping with military conscription?" Howard asked.
Sheldon gave him another glare, "Like the amalgamation of Florence Nightingale and She-Hulk," he said defiantly.
"She-Hulk?" he chuckled.
"She practically carried me from the car," he gushed.
"Awesome," said Raj.
"So, she doesn't mind being your emergency contact then?" Leonard asked.
"Why would she? She's safeguarding the well being of a future Nobel laureate. A rare privilege indeed."
"Huh!" he said, rolling his eyes.
"You didn't call her She-Hulk though, right?" Howard said.
"No, I could barely speak," he said
"Probably for the best," Howard said.
"As Penny is blonde, may I suggest the far more flattering analogy of Florence Nightingale and Supergirl?" said Raj. "She-Hulk is the strongest female in the Marvel universe, but in DC it's Supergirl."
"Well noted," Sheldon nodded in agreement.
Just then the door opened very suddenly and the blonde Supergirl walked in with a plastic bag in her hands, "Okay Sheldon, I've got your…"
She stopped, realizing the room was no longer empty.
"Penny," Leonard said.
"Oh… Leonard… hi," she replied awkwardly.
Sheldon shuffled across towards her. She reached into the bag and pulled out three packets, reading the names out, "Omep-p-prazo-o-ole antacid, Aleve pain relief, and Vermont Energy supplement. If they are the wrong ones, don't grumble," she warned, putting them back into the bag. "…and here's your change."
"Thank you, Penny."
"Do you need anything else?"
He shook his head.
"Okay, well I'll be off," she said, flashing a look at the others.
"Don't forget, this Friday," he said with a little smirk. Penny smiled uneasily, she said a quick goodbye and then she was gone.
Sheldon made his way to the counter and began looking over the medicine packaging, squinting at the fine print. The guys continued to watch him in silence.
"What's happening on Friday?" Raj asked finally, the question they were all thinking.
"Oh," said Sheldon smiling, "It's our first official date."
Raj smiled, "Ooh where are you going? If you need a restaurant suggestion, I would recomm…" Leonard and Howard were staring, so he trailed off.
"You're going out on Friday? It's Chinese night and the guys are coming around to watch Iron Man," said Leonard.
"Darn it!" said Sheldon, "I do like Iron Man."
Leonard smiled "…and we're having Chinese!"
"I will be having Chinese too. We're going to Szechuan Palace. Mr Chen is reserving his best table," he said, "I hope they haven't changed their menu again," he added, with a worried look. He put the kettle on the boil and popped to his room, taking his medicines with him.
"Well that was weird," said Howard, as he disappeared.
"Hmm," said Leonard thinking, "You don't think she'll actually sign that agreement. Do you?"
"No way." Howard said.
"Love works in mysterious ways, dude," said Raj.
"That's God!" Howard groaned, "…and come on, that's not mysterious. That's down right peculiar."
"Well, it's just something Amy said the other day. She's moving on and she said, maybe I should do the same," he said.
"Are you still dating Amy?" Howard asked Raj.
"Sure, from time to time. Did you know, when she was in the sixth grade, a kid stuck her in a dumpster. I had the exact same thing happen to me. It's uncanny." He said grinning wildly.
"No, I didn't know that," said Leonard, with a frustrated tone in his voice.
"Easy Leonard," said Howard, "just because Amy has fallen for our own caramel Vishnu. That doesn't mean Penny is going to fall for Sheldon. She's probably just trying to help, you know what she's like."
"That's true, but I'm starting to get a bad feeling about this. I can accept her driving him home when he's sick, but they have an actual date. Why would she agree to that?"
"You got me stumped," he said.
"Did you know the God Kamadeva, was ordered to spread love in the world by shooting his flower-arrows? Maybe Penny was hit by one of those," said Raj.
Howard looked at him, as though he were insane. "What's up with everyone? This is Sheldon we're talking about. He's practically a eunuch."
"How do you mean everyone?" said Leonard.
"The other day I told Bernadette I thought the whole thing between Sheldon and Penny was nuts because they were too different and she snapped my head off," he said. "WE'RE different, do you think that's nuts as well?" he said, putting on his best Bernadette impression.
"Wow," said Leonard, "That is strange."
The kettle whistled and Sheldon came scuttering out of the bedroom. The guys sat watching him again, not speaking. There was a hush in the air.
The week crawled by, but finally; it was date night. Her date night! with Sheldon Cooper. She'd heard many reports back from Amy over the years, but she never imagined she would be going on one herself. Or, that she would be looking forward to it so much.
She thought back to the night Sheldon had locked himself out of the apartment. If she had not jumped into that bed with him, she would never have learned of his secret desires. She would still be with Leonard. Dragging her feet and wondering what that nagging feeling was, deep inside and why she felt so incomplete. She hadn't felt incomplete these last few weeks. She felt exhilarated, hopeful and strong.
It took sometime to decide what to wear. Something sexy, but not too tight, she thought. Sheldon didn't respond to flesh on display, like Leonard had. Nevertheless it had to be low cut. This time, she wanted him to look; she wanted him to want her. The memory of his bath fluttered through her mind like a soft breeze, setting off butterflies in her belly. She took in her reflection. A peach dress, with little scraps, that fell to her knees. Perfect.
"To battle," she said.
"Knock, knock, knock "Penny"
"Knock, knock, knock "Penny"
"Knock, knock, knock "Penny"
She had been waiting for that sound. Taking a second to prepare, she breathed in, rose from the couch and slowly went for the door.
"Hello Sheldon."
"Hello… Penny," he said.
He was wearing his black suit. The one she had picked out for him and he looked dashing. In his left hand was a briefcase.
"What's the case for?" she asked.
"A surprise," he said, "We have much to discuss."
"Oh, how intriguing," she said, with a broad smile.
He offered his arm and they made their way down the stairs on their first date.