Sorry for the short chapter, but I needed to get something out. School has been KICKING MY ASS. It'll be over in a few weeks and I'll have more time to devote to my writing. Yay! I hope you all enjoy!

Chapter Thirty-Three

Penny sat in the living room and waited for Sheldon to emerge from the shower. Leonard had yet to make an appearance and Penny wondered if he was just giving them some privacy, which she was grateful for. He seemed to be taking their relationship well and Penny was proud of him. He had surely grown up in the time she had known him. Sheldon, as well.

As she sat there, she couldn't help but get more and more nervous. Once Sheldon came back to the living room, they would discuss what they would tell his mom and Meemaw. Penny was afraid of their reactions to her. She knew that once she told her parents about Sheldon, they would be happy. Proud, even. She couldn't have picked a better man. Sheldon was a doctor, financially secure and treated Penny right. That was all they could ask for their daughter. However, she knew Sheldon could do much better than her. She wasn't anything special. She was just the blonde across the hall, who struggled to pay the rent and who, after five years, finally got her first big acting job in a play. She really wasn't anything to write home about.

"Penny? What's wrong?" So lost in her thoughts, Penny hadn't heard Sheldon walk into the room, hair still damp and shirts clinging to his damp skin.

"Nothing, Sheldon." She gave him her sunniest smile, hoping that it would deter him to how she really feeling.

"I don't believe you." Sheldon of old would have seen the smile and thought things were fine, but the new Sheldon knew when something was troubling her and it looked as if he wasn't going to accept 'nothing' for an answer.

"You got me, Sheldon," she sighed. "I'm just nervous about telling your mom and Meemaw about us." She kept her gaze on her lap, even when he took the seat next to her on the couch. "What if they don't like me? I mean, your mom didn't seem to mind me when we met that one time, but I wasn't dating you back then."

Sheldon reached over and grabbed her hands, a gesture that was taking Penny a little to get used to nowadays. "They'll like you, Penny. I'll tell them how happy you make me, and they'll have no choice but to love you, too."

"Love?" Her head lifted.

"U-Uh. Yes. They'll love you." This time, it was Sheldon who looked away.

"Okay." Penny took a deep breath. "Let's call them and get this over with."

Sheldon got to his feet and went to retrieve the phone. He held the device in his hand and looked down at her. "You know, once this is over they're going to want to come down for a visit."

Penny sighed. "I know. I wouldn't expect nothing less from your mother." She gave him a weak smile and willed her heart to stop racing. Soon, she would be talking to Mrs. Cooper and she needed to be calm about it.

Sheldon dialed a number and sat back in his spot as it rang. Penny wrung her hands in her lap and worried her lip. "Mother?" The sound of his voice caused her to jump, he looked at her and placed a hand on her knee.

"I know I called you just two weeks ago for our monthly call, but-"

"No, I didn't lose my job again. Yo- Yes, I came back from Europe yesterday." This time he had to hold the phone away from his ear as the angry voice of his mother blasted at him. When it seemed like she was finished yelling, he brought the phone back to his ear.

"I was too tired to call you yesterday, Mother, as you can see, I'm perfectly fine." He sighed and rolled his eyes. "It was good. I enjoyed myself." Pause. "No. That's what I've been wanting to tell you. I didn't go by myself, I went with Penny."

The smile left Penny's face, knowing what was coming next.

"No, I'm not lying." He glanced at her. "No, she didn't lose a bet!" It was clear that Sheldon was getting very agitated with his mother and if Penny were braver, she would have taken the phone from him and told Mrs. Cooper the news herself.

"Mother, can I just say what I called you about?" There was another pause and Sheldon sighed in relief. "Thank you. Okay, here it goes. Penny and I are together." This time when he pulled the phone from his ear, Penny could clearly hear the 'What?' on the other end.

"No, she didn't lose a bet. For the last time."

"Sheldon. Let me talk to her." When she reached for the phone, she tried to ignore the way her hand was shaking.

"You sure?" He mouthed.

She nodded and he handed her the phone. "Hi, Mrs. Cooper."

"Oh, honey, call me Mary."

"Okay...Mary. What Sheldon said was true. We're t-together." Penny glanced at Sheldon, but didn't linger. If she did, then she knew she would lose her nerve. "I've had feelings for your son for a long time a-and when we were in Europe, we admitted them to one another."

"Oh, my Lord! So it is true! I can't believe it. My boy finally got himself a girlfriend and a pretty one to boot."

"Thank you." Penny flushed feeling a little better.

"Now, of course, I got to make a visit over there to get reacquainted with you."

"Didn't expect anything different, Mrs. C- Mary."

"I can't wait to tell Missy and all the women in my prayer circle. We've been praying for Shelly since he was small. Now, be a dear, and hand me back to my boy. I'd like to talk with him a little more, if that's all right."

Penny smiled. "Of course. I'll see you when you come down."

"I can't wait, Penny. You know, I've always liked you. I think you're going to be real good for Shelly."

Tears sprang to Penny's eyes. "Thank you. That really means alot coming from you. Here's Sheldon." She handed Sheldon the phone and wiped the tears from her eyes. Settling the couch, feeling much better than she had several minutes before, she listened as Sheldon finished talking with his mom.

Sheldon placed the phone back where it belonged and took his seat next to Penny once more. "My mother will be coming up in a week or two. She says if Meemaw feels up to it, she'll come with. But no promise." He frowned.

"Is she sick?"

"No. But she is of an advanced age. Mom said if I wrote her a letter asking her to come, she may just do that." He rose to his feet. "Meemaw likes letters better than phone calls, but she does love the sound of my voice." He beamed like a young boy and Penny couldn't help but smile along with him.

"I like the sound of your voice, too, sweetie."

His cheeks flushed a little red. "Thank you, Penny." The blush deepened when Penny stood and kissed him on the lips. It took him a little, but soon, he was returning it. Just as Leonard made another appearance. He took one look at the couple and acted as if he had seen something terrible. He covered his face with his hands.

"My eyes!" He cried and stumbled back.

Penny went back down on her feet and glared at him. "No one asked you to come out of your room!"

However, when Leonard removed his hands, he was smiling. "I was just messing with you guys. Though, I'd rather not be witness to you two kissing...but I can deal with it." He was really making an effort to be okay with their new relationship and Penny was proud of him.

Sheldon made his way to his desk and started to pull out some paper. "I'm going to write a note to Meemaw. Penny, you are free to keep me company." He gave her a shy smile.

"I'd love to, but I need to go over some pages of the script for tomorrow. It's my first day of rehearsals." She beamed.

"You got a part?" Leonard asked.

"Yep. I got the call while in Paris. I'm playing a woman named Jenny from Kansas. She's the lead. This could be the big break I've been dying to get." All worries of Sheldon's family knowing about them flew out the window and Penny started to feel giddy, as if she had just gotten the call telling her she had the part.

"I'm proud of you," Leonard said sincerely.

"As am I."

"Thank you, guys," Penny blushed. "All right. I'm going to leave. Maybe later, you can help me run some lines, Sheldon?"

"Of course."

"Great! See you in a bit. Bye Leonard." And she sashayed from the room.

"If you were any other guy, Sheldon, I would think she was inviting you over to get laid." Leonard smiled at his friend and plopped in his chair.

Sheldon glared at him from his seat and then, bent to work on his letter to his precious Meemaw.

Thanks for reading!