Sheldon and Amy enjoyed the beautiful weather that the late morning brought as they walked. The neurobiologist loved that the blue in the sky matched the eyes of her beloved physicist. Words didn't need to be spoken as the two were still recovering from the emotional moments of earlier.

They entered a dense set of woods that astounded Amy. "As vast as my intelligence is, Sheldon, I never realized that Texas had all these trees. All that I knew of were oil, desert areas, and what some call ten gallon hats.

"Well, Amy, as much as I despise this place, I do acknowledge that there is more than God-fearing and that other crap you mentioned. Growing up in these parts, you take what you can get, especially when you are not the prototype Texan"

Amy heard the bitterness mixed in his voice. "I'm sorry, Sheldon"

Sheldon turned to his girlfriend. "Why are you sorry? From what you have mentioned before, Glendale wasn't the hotspot of tolerance either"

"Well, not all of my childhood was bad, I mean…my dad and I had some good times"

Once again in the last couple of hours, the enigma of Amy's father moved through his mind. For as long as they had known each other, he never took the time to ask about her paternal figure. He should have, but of course, that would have invoked emotion and caring, something Sheldon Lee Cooper worked all his life to shut out and avoid so he could instead concentrate on pure science.

Of course, Amy could have asked about George Cooper, but she never did because she was the only one who understood who he was. As she stated, she sensed it was not a subject to discuss with him.

Maybe if he asked about her father he could discuss his more freely. Experimentation was the key of science, of course.

"So what did you and your father do?"

For the third time today, she felt nausea creep up in her stomach and her heart began to squeeze. 'But Sheldon is asking….he has a right to ask. Damn it, Fowler, you've wanted him to give a shit for five years. Now he is trying and you're freaking out. Get a grip!"

She thought for a moment before she started. "He was a big Neil Diamond fan. He used to sing Crackling Rose to me at night when I was young. Sometimes, he would take me to his lab at USC and show me around all of his projects."

Amy inhaled to stop the tears that threatened to flow. "Once a month, we would go to the zoo together to see the monkeys. When there was a new exhibit, we would each research it thoroughly. When there, my dad and I would quiz each other to see who was more knowledgeable"

Sheldon didn't miss the glow in her eyes discussing her father or the water that looked close to falling. "Sounds like you were close to your dad"

Amy fought back the tears in her eyes. "I was. What about you and your dad, Sheldon?"

Sheldon thought about what to say. "He didn't like me very much"

Amy forgot about her feelings for a minute. "Sheldon, I'm—"

"Come with me, Amy. I have a place to show you"

"What?"

Sheldon knew after seeing his girlfriend open herself up with a hurt that even he could see was still there, he could do the same thing. She would never judge. He knew he could trust her.

"Doctor Fowler, this way"

He grabbed her hand without realizing it and pulled her through the trees. Amy was befuddled at her boyfriend's insistence, but years of Sheldon education taught her to just go with the flow in times like this. When they finally stopped, she was definitely not prepared for what she saw.

They were in front of a trio of trees, one pine and two oak. Inside the trees was a shack built off the ground on a platform. The wood looks aged, but the structure looked sturdy.

"Sheldon…..where are we?"

The physicist turned to his girlfriend. "It's our, well, my tree house" When he saw the questioning look in her eyes, Sheldon continued. "Pop Pop built it for all of us, but Missy wasn't there much. Junior did until Mee Maw caught him smoking marijuana when he was twelve"

Amy could see he wanted to say something, but was scared. She gently squeezed his hand as she felt his hand get cold from fear. A few moments later, his hand warmed again and his pulse lowered.

"When the other kids….." He couldn't bring himself to say the words. "…when they weren't nice to me…this is where I would go. No one hurt me here"

Sheldon led Amy up the small set of stairs. He moved a rock and pulled out a small key. Unlocking the door, the two went inside. There was a TV along with a Nintendo 64. One wall had an old bookshelf filled with physics books alternating with J.R.R Tolkien and other science fiction books. The other wall had an old but sturdy couch with a quilt Amy recognized as one similar in the Cooper's living room.

"Wow, Sheldon. This place is…"

Realizing how much he opened up, Sheldon had a knee jerk reaction to protect himself as he did several times over the years. "Yeah, I know it's a rat trap, but it was where I could concentrate on my science and games and to be left alone. I know it's not as fancy as anything you saw growing up, but I don't care!"

Amy turned to her boyfriend, an impassive mask on her face hiding the sadness she felt at his remarks. "I was going to say that this place must have made you feel very safe and that you were lucky to have it as I did not have the same. Far from being fancy" Amy said with the last work in quotation marks. "Glendale has mostly middle class people, even though a lot of famous people are buried at Forest Lawn. Even had a couple serial killers and a fire investigator who committed arson about thirty years back. If anything, it's infamous as opposed to famous. Now, I'm going to find my way back to the house because I don't feel like being around you while you are in a snit because you are feeling vulnerable and exposed."

Instantly shamed, Sheldon grabbed her arm as she turned to walk away. "Amy, don't go. I'm sorry for being what Penny so crudely calls an asshole"

Amy felt conflicted as she didn't want to set herself up for a fall again. However, she saw Sheldon's eyes and knew he was being sincere. 'Damn those soulful blue eyes'

"Okay"

Sheldon smiled one of his crooked smiles as he led his girlfriend to the couch and sat down. He looked around for a moment. "I spent many hours here. This is where I would soak up hours of knowledge. In here is where I did my work towards my first doctorate at Rice University. I miss this place"

Amy looked around wistfully. "I wish I had a place like this growing up. The closest I had was when I was able to go to my father's lab after school when I was older. He would let me help with his experiments. I remember when he took me to Harvard for one of his conferences. I was…..nine I think. He let me attend lectures with him and introduced me to some friends he had at the Mahoney"

Unwelcome feelings suddenly stirred up. "But that was a long time ago"

Sheldon sat there overwhelmed at his girlfriend's revelations. Before he could stop himself, the words came flying out.

"When I was eight, I found my father in here with another woman, doing things only mommies and daddies do"

Of all the things she thought he would say, that was not one of them. "Oh Sheldon, I'm so sorry"

He merely continued as if Amy didn't say anything. "He chased me down as I ran away. When he caught up with me, I could smell the whiskey on his breath right before he smacked me for snooping. He told me to get my skinny butt home, but I ran to Mee Maw's instead. I know she went there after him, and I don't know what happened, but he never laid a hand on me after that"

Sheldon sniffled to hold off any tears. "After all that stuff, Mee Maw said the tree house was off limits to anyone besides Missy and myself. Anyone else who showed up there would regret it she said" He wiped his nose with the back of his hand. "When Mee Maw says something she means it"

Amy couldn't say anything as she sensed there was more to the story. She wasn't disappointed.

"My father would get mad at me when I would do my homework or work on physics. During football season, he wouldn't let me do any homework until I watched a game with him. I had to listen to my father and Junior as they drank beer and yelled at the television."

"Your brother drank that young?"

Sheldon sat there and inhaled. "Yeah, they had their first beer together during the 1988 Super Bowl. Mom would always be away at church on Sundays and Missy would be at a friend's house. I studied as much as I could on the game, but sometimes, my father asked my opinion and if it was the wrong one in his book, he would call me stupid. Sometimes…he encouraged Junior to join in. It's why I was inebriated last Thanksgiving. I was back there all over again and I couldn't deal with it."

Amy was stunned. She knew he didn't get along with his brother, but she had no idea. "Sheldon….."

"When my father died, Junior would still taunt me. He especially liked to hide my physics books and watched me search for hours while he said mean things to me. When his friends were around, he enjoyed giving me wedgies and noogies that hurt like the dickens"

Before Amy could say anything, he continued. "I know my mother has protected him from the law a few times because of his drinking. When I asked her about it, she said Missy and I had advantages that Junior didn't have and he needed her. Needed her my posterior"

To Amy's surprise, Sheldon took her hand. "Amy, I know that I am not good with what is popularly known as the social graces and sometimes I am completely oblivious to people's feelings, but I'm trying. You're the reason I am trying to be better…to be a better boyfriend. I love you, Amy"

She felt her fears fade away with those words. "I-I love you, too Sheldon"

Sheldon squeezed her hand tighter. "Amy, can I kiss you?"

Amy's eyes glowed a darker green that filled Sheldon's heart. "Yes, Sheldon"

The two scientists came together. As their lips touched, Sheldon caressed Amy's cheek like a feather. Amy felt something stir inside her leading her to put her arms around his neck before letting out a small moan as his tongue gently traced her lower lip. He moved his hands and caressed her back, causing her to mew softly. Her sounds pushed Sheldon to gently lay her back against the couch.

Amy was surprised as Sheldon's hands began to roam down her sides. As his left hand remained on her waist his other hand began to caress her leg, causing tremors in Amy. Her hormones overruled her head when Sheldon moved close enough for her to feel a presence poking her limb. Without thinking her tongue gently pressed for entrance into Sheldon's mouth and it was granted.

Feeling emboldened, Sheldon's hand moved back up to touch one of the mounds on his girlfriend's chest and was rewarded with a moan that sent delicious sensations through his body. When he felt Amy's hand on his thigh, his hand moved through the lightweight cardigan she wore.

"You should take this off, Doctor Fowler. Temperatures get pretty hot here in July"

Amy smirked before moving her lips to his neck. "Why don't you remove it for me, Doctor Cooper?"

"Well, I can't let you get heatstroke. Neurobiology would suffer without your presence"

Sheldon unbuttoned her cardigan and felt her breast again on top of her two remaining layers. As much as he enjoyed it, there was something that was eluding him. Moving her over slightly, his hand slipped and gripped her rear. He could feel his special area between his legs straining his pants. Suddenly, panic overcame him and he sat up quickly.

"Amy I have to stop. I'm going to lose control. I can't….I can't" He cried as he put his head in his hands.

Amy's moment of frustration ceased as she saw her boyfriend start to have a meltdown. "Sheldon, it's okay" She moved to touch him, but she sensed that it would freak him out more.

After a few minutes, he calmed down. "I'm sorry, Amy. I enjoy kissing and touching you much more than I should, but it feels disrespectful to grope you like that. I'm sorry I'm not normal."

"And I am, Sheldon?" Amy saw him continue to look down. "Sheldon, look at me. Look at me!" When he turned his eyes towards her, she was relieved.

Taking a chance, she took his hand and was relieved when he didn't pull away. "Sheldon, we do not have experience in kissing and making out. No one bothered to look at me twice when I was younger. What we had now was a bit overwhelming for me, too. From a biological standpoint, we both had elevated levels of oxytocin which translated into what is considered making out"

"I'm not ready for coitus, Amy"

Feeling relief, Amy could only sigh. "I'm not either, Sheldon. I just want to be closer to you. There are other ways to be intimate besides coitus" She relaxed when she saw his entire body uncoil. "You know, you did promise to take me to Houston to see the sights. How about we go back and plan it? We could play Counterfactuals."

Sheldon smiled. "That is an excellent idea, Doctor Fowler"

The two went outside and Sheldon closed the lock before hiding the key under a rock. The two held hands as they walked back to the Cooper household, each feeling happy about what happened but each kept their reactions to a minimum so the other wouldn't feel pressured.

The presence of things left unsaid was tucked away by both, each praying that it would never have to come out again.