Sheldon has returned to Pasadena for Penny. Is he too late?

He stepped off the elevator and headed down the corridor. Missy had wanted to accompany him but for this first visit, he wanted it to be just him and Penny. He had spoken with the doctor and reviewed the chart. The prognosis was nowhere near reassuring. The infection was resistant to treatment and had caused swelling to put pressure on her spine. Once that was cleared up, they hoped she would regain mobility. Unfortunately, there was no way to know for sure at this time. The graze to her head had caused a concussion. Penny had also experienced moments of confusion and at least two separate blackouts that first week, but had not had any more trouble since.

Sheldon hesitated for a fraction of a second before knocking three times lightly on the door. He opened it up and looked around. He wasn't happy to see Leonard standing beside Penny's bed. Beside him was another surprise, Raj's sister Priya. Near the window stood Howard and Raj, looking very uncomfortable. Sheldon got the impression they were embarrassed and reluctant to be there. He also noticed that Penny didn't even glance over at him. She kept her face turned toward the wall, away from everyone.

Sheldon walked into the room and hung his jacket on the hook over the door. "Hello, Penny," he said as he approached the bed. He looked down at his former vivacious neighbor with a smile. Her eyes flicked up to him, but she didn't answer. "Hello, Priya. What brings you here?"

Priya looked at him without expression. She was all business. "Hello, Sheldon. I was just explaining to Penny her options. It's been two years since she signed that PoA, and I have been hired to make sure she still wants to abide by it. After all, you and Penny haven't really spoken since she signed that. Maybe it's time for a change," Priya directed that last statement toward Penny. "Maybe you would like someone you are closer to, to make these decisions."

Sheldon felt a spike of anger run through him. Would Penny change her PoA to Leonard? He tried to think of something to say that would persuade Penny to leave it as is, but Priya was already talking again.

"It hardly seems fair to you, Penny, that the person who can make these decisions doesn't even live here in the United States. Do you even really need a power of attorney? Your injuries haven't greatly impaired your mental capabilities." Priya opened a folder and held out a pen. "This form will invalidate the PoA that Sheldon claims. You will be making your own medical decisions, not someone else."

After a moment Penny looked up at Priya and Leonard. Then she looked over at Howard and Raj and finally at Sheldon. Then she turned back to the wall.

"Get out."

Penny's voice was barely above a whisper and they all strained to hear it. Leonard looked at Sheldon triumphantly. Penny looked back up at Leonard. "I said get out," she stated a bit more firmly. "Take your lawyer and go away."

Sheldon watched apprehensively as Penny glanced at him again. She sighed and nodded to a chair nearby. "Sit down, Sheldon."

He walked around the bed and sat down, watching as Leonard and the others slowly left the room. Just before the door closed Leonard shot him a look of pure hatred. He looked back at Penny and sucked in a harsh breath. Her hair was dull and lank, her skin pale and wane. But her eyes were what hurt the most. They were dead. Like doll's eyes. The spark, the glint of humor and joy that was always present in her expression was gone, leaving them flat and dull. He wasn't even able to tell what color they were. They were a sort of grey/green now. Like dead moss.

"Why are you here?" she asked blandly.

Sheldon leaned forward and reached out for her hand. His fingers curled around her hand but her fingers just lay there limply. "I came because I was worried about you. I'm here to help you get better."

Penny looked down at their hands and slowly pulled hers away, leaving him feeling bereft. "Why? You left me 22 months ago, Sheldon. You left and you made it perfectly clear you wanted nothing to do with me."

Sheldon moved the chair closer and brushed her hair back from her cheek. "I never meant to hurt you, Penny. I have been rebuilding my career. I had to start over. But I never stopped caring about you. You are my friend and I want to help you."

For a second Penny's eyes flickered with pain and he was astonished by the depth of it. This was not from the accident. This was too deep, too encompassing for that. Had he hurt her that badly by leaving as he did? By cutting himself off from her? Penny looked away from him and pressed the call button for the nurse. A voice came over the speaker in the bed rail.

"Can I do something for you, Ms. Queen?"

"Can I have a pain pill?" she asked softly.

"Yes, dear. I'll be right there," the voice said.

Penny looked at Sheldon briefly before reaching up and turning off the overhead light. He knew a dismissal when he saw one. Sheldon stood and leaned over to place a gentle kiss on the crown of her head. "I'll come back when you wake up," he said tenderly.

He walked to the door as the nurse walked in. Her voice floated to him softly, and it broke his heart. "Do what you want. It doesn't matter to me," she said.

XXXXX

Sheldon had been surprised to find out Penny no longer lived in 4B at Los Robles. She had moved three weeks after he had left Pasadena into a small apartment over Stuart's shop. When he questioned Penny's mom about that, she told him that she didn't know why Penny moved, only that she had waited long enough to help his mom pack his things from 4A before packing her own.

He had spent the last two years under the assumption that Penny and Leonard had been in a relationship. That assumption was based on something Leonard had said when they showed up at his mom's house in Texas. Leonard had said Penny sent them to get him, and when he refused to return Leonard had stormed off saying he had wasted three days that he could have spent with Penny, that she was waiting on him to get back impatiently.

He stepped into the comic book shop and looked around. The place hadn't changed much. He spotted Stuart over by the reduced bins so he headed that way. Captain Sweatpants looked at him with astonishment, obviously surprised to see him. Stuart didn't look surprised to see him at all.

Stuart reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. "Hello, Sheldon. You look good."

Sheldon nodded a greeting. "Hello, Stuart. How are you doing?"

"I'm well," he said in a monotone. "I guess you want to see Penny's apartment."

Sheldon nodded, glad the formalities were over. "Penny moved here almost two years ago?"

Stuart nodded. "I had placed an ad to rent out one of the two apartments upstairs. I live in the other. Penny showed up one day, signed the lease and moved in the next day. She had only one request. That I not tell Leonard, Howard or Raj she lived here."

Stuart led him up a flight of stairs and past two doors. He held up a hand to stop Sheldon when they reached a third door. "Hold on. Whack doesn't know you and he might not be too friendly."

Sheldon frowned and looked toward the door. "Whack?"

Stuart nodded and unlocked the door. There was a scramble of feet and when he opened the door, a small brown dog leapt up into Stuart's arms and began whimpering. Stuart murmured soothingly to the animal and rubbed it's head. He looked over at Sheldon. "This is Whack-a-doodle. Penny found him by a dumpster at work one night. He was only a few days old, still had the umbilical cord attached. She raised him herself on a bottle."

Sheldon was stunned by the dog's name. He looked at it carefully, noting the long floppy ears and the short stubby legs. Probably a mixed breed, but mostly Dachshund. Sheldon looked at Stuart. "Penny used to call me that whenever she was aggravated with me."

Stuart nodded. "She said once he reminds her of you. He has a certain spot he sits in, he's a picky eater, and he's not very sociable. In fact, other than me, Penny and your mom, Whack doesn't like anyone."

Sheldon was shocked. "My mom?"

Stuart nodded as they walked into Penny's apartment. Whack wiggled down and rushed over to the armchair. Whack jumped up onto a small stool and from there, onto the chair. He turned in a circle twice before laying down and baring his teeth to Sheldon. "Mrs. Cooper has visited six times that I know of. She is really nice. I like your mom. She made apple cobbler last time. Best meal I ever ate," Stuart reminisced. He looked at Sheldon. "You didn't know?"

He shook his head, wondering what else he had missed out on these last two years.

"Why are you back?" Stuart asked calmly.

Sheldon looked around the apartment, and back to Stuart. "Because she needs me." He reached out to adjust a framed photo on a shelf. It was the picture of the two of them at Saturnalia when she had given him the Nimoy napkin. "Because I need her," he said softly.

XXXXX

Sheldon opened the door to Penny's room and stepped inside. He glanced at her, noting the way she barely acknowledged his entrance. 90% of her focus seemed to be on the small watermark near the window. He set the duffel bag he was carrying down on the chair beside the bed.

"How are you this morning?" he asked.

Her eyes flicked toward him and she shrugged. "Same as I was yesterday. Same as I will be tomorrow."

Sheldon suppressed his sigh and opened the duffel bag. He pulled out clean clothes for Penny and a bag of toiletries. "Well, as soon as we get you bathed and dressed, we'll go out for some fresh air."

Now he got a true reaction from her. Her eyes widened and for a brief second, there was surprise in her eyes. The expression disappeared almost as soon as it appeared.

"No."

A/N Just a quick reminder, people, when I go to moderate guest reviews, I look at the name first. If it just says guest (or the thoroughly ridiculous "Tseug") then I don't even bother reading it. I just delete it and move on. If you are too lazy, ashamed, cowardly or whatever to log in, I'm too busy to read it. Lunasea, Anon 13, and Elizabeth are the only ones I make an exception for.