A/N: Thanks again for the wonderful reviews, except for the crappy Guest one. If you have the balls to be nasty in a review, then have them enough to give a name so we can start a dialogue (You know who you are). I've posted the review on the Big Bang Theory Forum so others can get a kick out of it as much as I did once I got over my pity party.

If I don't respond back to your review right away, don't think I'm ungrateful. Real life has a way of getting in the middle of my plans, sometimes. Always know your words are appreciated.

Don't despair at the end since I have several more chapters planned for this. The flash forwards do mean something.

Disclaimer: I don't own BBT but like to take them out to play sometimes.

The woman woke up from her thoughts. She remembered never being as scared as she was after the argument in her life. Needing reassurance, she moved to the other side of the bed, but was startled when she felt not warmth, but sheets. She looked up and around before she saw him sitting by the window. Getting out of bed, she tiptoed over and smiled as she saw him sleeping with a small grin on his face.

Grabbing the small blanket from the end of the bed, she returned and covered him up. When satisfied, she walked back over and slipped into bed. Closing her eyes, she remembered that the fight was the first of several shocks in this roller coaster ride…

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Slowly Amy turned to see her boyfriend staring at her with red eyes. She watched as he quickly glanced at the center island before taking two steps away. It occurred to her after a few seconds that he was afraid to approach her.

She was as befuddled on what to do as much as he was, so Amy did the only thing she could.

Walking a few steps, she grabbed another mug from the rack and made another mug of hot tea. Grabbing both mugs, she walked them out to the dining room table. Sheldon followed her as they got to the table. When he sat next to Amy, she pushed one of the mugs towards Sheldon, who took it gladly.

They sat a moment before each took a sip as neither knew how to start or how much to delve into. Just as things began to get awkward, Sheldon remembered the advice Meamaw gave to him about Amy.

'Moon Pie, shit or get off the pot'

Sheldon couldn't think of the best words to say, so he put his hand on the table and reached for hers. His heart warmed when she took it gladly.

For Amy, that ice breaker gave her the words she needed to say.

"Sheldon, I wasn't a very good girlfriend to you."

Sheldon was flabbergasted. "Of course you were, Amy. If anyone was wrong, it was me. I'm difficult and make it hard for people to love me. You were just trying to take care of me and I didn't appreciate it enough. I'm sorry I'm so hard to love."

Amy's heart broke. "Sheldon, you're not hard to love and you're not the one to blame. Yes, you have been difficult, but I knew that going in. Instead of seeing what was in front of me, I let my wants dictate my behavior. I listened to my bestie and Bernie and pushed us for intimacy that we were not ready for. Girls shouldn't put up with that and neither should boys."

Sheldon missed Amy's slip of the tongue as he was determined to demonstrate how he was wrong. "Amy! You cook me nice dinners, help me with my projects, plan nice trips with my exact specifications, and defer to me so I don't get upset. I've denied us carnal pleasures because I'm afraid." Sheldon said.

Amy missed what Sheldon said as she counterpointed. "Sheldon, you were my first real friend. Because of you, I have other friends and a social life now. I haven't appreciated the gifts you gave me."

"Amy, you've showed me love and friendship for almost five years and I haven't always treasured it as I should. Instead I shove it back in your face and act ungrateful."

Amy was about to counter Sheldon's point when she realized what was going on. "Sheldon, listen to us. We're both trying to take all the blame when we both are responsible for what's happened."

"I will compromise with 80/20 with me taking the 80 percent." Sheldon protested.

"No, Sheldon. It's 50/50 and that's final. If you love me, then accept this so we can work together to fix our problems."

"But isn't the man is supposed to defer to his girlfriend? At least that's what Leonard and Howard do with Penny and Bernadette. My dad didn't do that and it upset my mom."

Hearing Sheldon's words made her shudder. "Well, we're not going to be like that. If we are patient with one another, I think we can make this work because I think I've listened to my friends…and my fears for far too long. It's time I really listened to you, Sheldon…and to my instincts." Amy smiled. "It's the most logical thing to do, Doctor Cooper. Don't you think?"

Sheldon could only smile. "I've listened to my fears long enough, too, Doctor Fowler." He hesitated for a moment before his voice caught as he spoke. "I-I love you, Amy Farrah Fowler."

Amy's heart exploded with love. She smiled as she got up and walked over to her boyfriend before taking his face into her hands. "I love you, too Sheldon Lee Cooper."

He stood up and they faced each other before they came together in a passionate embrace. When the need for air superseded desire, they reluctantly broke apart. Amy saw the pure lust in Sheldon's eyes and was lost.

Sheldon saw his girlfriend's flushed cheeks and felt very powerful as he realized he wanted only one thing.

Taking her hand, he walked her up the stairs to his bedroom. When they got there, he shut the door and locked it. When he turned around, the look in his eyes made Amy's panties damp. She could do nothing but take him in her arms and their lips came together in a feverish battle.

In quick succession, Sheldon unbuttoned her cardigan and removed her blouse. When he saw her lightweight T-shirt, he growled in frustration before tugging it off and tossing it on the floor. Amy responded in kind as she attempted to pull both of his shirts off at once and they somehow got stuck on his head and elbow in a way only Sheldon could manage.

"Stop moving your arm, Doctor Cooper!"

Finally getting the shirts off, the two tumbled around the roll-away and onto his childhood bed like old lovers as their hands awkwardly explored each other. When Sheldon's hand maneuvered under Amy's bra, he groaned in delight when he felt the hardened nipple. Hearing her moan with her legs squeezing his body made his pants tighten. In the back of his mind, he registered pain in his hand and knee from where he skinned it yesterday, but it paled in comparison to the electricity his fingers and lips felt of the softness of Amy's skin and lips.

Amy's skin was on fire as her boyfriend planted wet kisses on her collarbone and down her sternum. Before she could react, she felt her bra cup pulled up and her body exploded in pleasure as Sheldon's lips took a nipple into his mouth and sucked on it like eating an ice cream cone.

"Ooohh God, Doctor Cooper!" She moaned as her body arches and began to undulate underneath him.

Feeling her body and hearing his title drove him harder as he moved to nip gently onto her breast. The different texture of the skin and the nipple itself fascinated him and he couldn't get enough. Feeling bolder, his other hand began to move down her stomach when he felt her tense. It was like a splash of cold water on his head as he sobered up. As much as his body wanted to continue the trajectory he was on with Amy, emotionally, he wasn't ready for this…and he was sure she wasn't either.

Before he could say anything, Amy spoke up. "Sheldon, I…I think…I've never been sexually stimulated like this in my life. My hormones want to continue, but-"

"It's not the right time." Sheldon said before he moved his right hand from her stomach and caressed her face. "I know."

Amy smiled at the unspoken agreement that for the first time, making love was an inevitability. "We'll know when the time is right."

"When we're both ready. We need to help each other first Amy." Sheldon said and he could see that his girlfriend knew what he was talking about.

"Yes we do and we will."

Sheldon inhaled. "Amy, I've never been like this with anyone before. I find that it is not unpleasant, but I need to be able to know that you will love me as I am. I think I will be ready in time for coitus someday, but I can't give you a date or time. I want, no, need to know that that my feelings are not a mere inconvenience."

Amy thought about her response. "Sheldon, I promise on the study of Neurobiology that from now on, I will listen to you first instead of my friends. However, you have to promise to not freak out at every opinion I give that may be out of your comfort zone. I don't want to be afraid that anything I say will cause you to take off again. I-I need to trust you again."

Sheldon brushed a few stray hairs off his girlfriend's face. He fixed the glasses that were slightly askew from their activities and gazed into his beloved's eyes. "I promise on the study of Physics to try not to freak out. However, I need to emphasize something. Please believe me when I say you did nothing to cause me to leave California. I…"

He became choked up for a second before regaining his composure. "I am so sorry, Amy Farrah Fowler that my meltdown caused you to feel that way because you did nothing wrong. Nothing you can say to me now or in the future will cause me to run away from you again. I want with you what Meamaw and Pop Pop had. Can we?"

Amy felt a big weight off her shoulders at Sheldon's words. She caressed his cheek as she looked him in the eye. "I think we will…someday."

Sheldon could only respond by taking her palm from his cheek and kissing it and her wrist before holding it. Amy looked into her boyfriend's eyes and felt so much love she thought she was going to burst. "I know it's not the right time to make love, but can we cuddle? I want to feel you next to me."

Sheldon gladly complied as he moved onto his back and held Amy close to him. He thought for a minute before speaking. "Amy, do you still want to go to Michigan today instead of tomorrow?"

"Yes I need to…shit, my flight! I missed my flight yesterday!" Amy moved to get up and Sheldon moved to accommodate her, but his knee rubbed against the bed. This time, he didn't have hormones to keep any pain at bay. "Ouchie!"

Amy saw the torn pants and dried blood. "Sheldon! What happened to your knee?"

Sheldon saw the concern on his girlfriend's face and immediately laid down and pulled her into his arms before she could protest. "I fell when I ran back into the house yesterday."

"When did you run into the house?" Amy said before the light bulb went off. "You ran when you returned and I wasn't here."

Sheldon saw his girlfriend start to cry and couldn't take it again so he moved to distract her. "Amy, please don't cry. I need you to help me with my knee. Relationship Agreement Section Four Boo Boos and Ouchies, remember?"

Amy saw the shy smile on his face and knew what he was doing. Grinning back, she looked at his knee. "You broke your scab and it looks like a nasty bruise, so you'll be hurting, but will live."

She them examined his hand and saw ugly shades of blue and purple forming on his knuckles. "We also have to get your hand looked at soon. I know this must be hurting more than that knee."

She was right, but he didn't want to be selfish. "I'll take some ibuprofen in a moment." Sheldon moved Amy's head back to his chest. He waited a moment as he got his courage up to ask what he wanted to say. "Can I go with you?"

"Well, if we're going to get your hand examined, you have to Sheldon."

Sheldon shook his head. "I know that, Doctor Fowler. I mean, after that."

"To Michigan?"

He inhaled for a moment. "To Michigan…and to go home. I want to go home with you, Amy Farrah Fowler as long as Meamaw is okay."

"Sheldon, this could be sprained—"

"Doesn't matter. I can get my hand examined anywhere, but I don't want to be here without you."

Amy watched for his Koala face, a facial tic, or any of his other tells to know when he was holding something back, but none came. Relieved, she smiled before putting her head back on his chest. "I would like that."

"Good. Good." Sheldon said quietly.

"What about your mother Sheldon? Or your brother?"

"I really don't care right now, Amy. The only thing I want to do with Junior is beat the crap out of him and I am not ready to talk to my mother yet. Are you?"

Sheldon felt his girlfriend shake her head on his chest. He knew that his mother would be upset that they were leaving early, but he didn't want to see her…not for a while. What she did to Amy and her actions in regard to Junior was too much to forget about right now. His girlfriend was his top priority, except for Meamaw.

"I want to go to Michigan, but we need time to work things out, Sheldon and frankly some quiet time together. How can we do it here when we're not sure when everyone is coming back to the house? My flight took off several hours ago and I was lucky to get a seat on my original flight departing tomorrow."

Sheldon made a face as he realized that Amy was correct. 'How do they get Amy back to Michigan, but also try to work on their relationship?' Suddenly, his eyes lit up.

"You were going back to Mount Pleasant tomorrow, but your class wasn't until Wednesday night, correct? You just wanted back early so you wouldn't be rushed."

"Yes. What are you getting at, Sheldon?"

"I know how we can be together and get you back in time."

"How?" Amy said intrigued.

Sheldon moved Amy and he got out of bed. He held out his hand to his girlfriend and she took it before standing next to him. "Come with me, Doctor Fowler."

Five hours, one blessing from Meamaw, one smartphone, one flight from Houston to Dallas, and one cab later, the couple were relaxing on the bottom bunk of their room on the 22 Texas Eagle Amtrak train. Amy snuggled close to Sheldon and he put his arm around her as the train pulled out of the station with a destination of Chicago.

"Sheldon, this is perfect."

He smiled before kissed the top of her head. "I know."

Amy smacked him on his chest before they settled in for the ride, just happy being together. They knew it would take time, but they could enjoy this moment of solitude before reality smacked them head on by his family and when they returned to California.