A/N: I have slightly edited the first paragraph. If you've already read this chapter there's no reason to read it again. I made a mistake and corrected it.

41

After Penny, Nora and Alex washed up and got dressed they headed out for some dinner. Since Penny really didn't know their neighborhood well she asked Nora and Alex to choose the restaurant. They picked a little bistro within walking distance. They sat at a little table in the corner.

"Figured you're finally ready to talk and didn't want to pick anywhere too loud or crowded. Or where you might run into anyone you know."

"Yeah, thanks Alex."

"So you said you figured some stuff out this afternoon?"

"I think so. A lot of stuff still isn't settled but I know a couple of things."

"Like what?"

"Well, when I finally decided to marry Leonard I really didn't have any other choice. I had no job, no money and no future except with him."

"And now?"

"My situation has changed. I can support myself in a way I never could before. I really like working with you and Sheldon. You guys treat me like I have a brain. Like I know what I'm doing. It makes me feel good about myself, something that never happened while I was at The Cheesecake Factory."

"Penny, you do have a brain. You're good at what you do and as time goes on and you learn more stuff Sheldon and I are going to give you more and more interesting stuff to do. You're a really important part of what we're doing at CalTech."

"Thanks, Alex. In the eight years I was at The Cheesecake Factory nobody ever said anything like that to me. Nobody ever treated me as anything more than a cheesecake delivery system."

"Kiddo, you were wasting your time at that place. Waitressing is a crap job. Never making enough money to get by and depending on getting the right shifts where you have to flirt with and kiss customer's asses for tips. That's no way to live."

"Tell me about it. And now with the Wil Wheaton thing about to happen I have a chance to do what I came out here to do in the first place. And actually make some money doing it. And I won't have to depend on Leonard for everything. I'm gonna be able to pay him back money he loaned me and get rid of the crap car he got me and buy a new one with my own money."

"Not to mention the odd modeling gig here and there."

"Yeah, I'm not exactly ready to commit to doing that. But it is really nice to have some options for the first time in my life."

"Penny, you're kind of avoiding the lactose intolerant elephant in the room."

"Yeah, I know."

"So what are you going to do about Leonard?"

"I'm still not entirely sure. We are definitely so not ready to be married. Or even live together. I'm pretty sure of that."

"Well, duh."

"And I don't think we're even on the same page on a lot of stuff like kids and where we live and even how we live."

"Like…"

"Like I've been saying, he was okay with me not working. And as long as that only meant not being a waitress or doing soft porn gorilla movies I was okay with that too. And I think Leonard really enjoys being the breadwinner. Maybe a little too much."

"But things have changed."

"I've never had a job that really meant anything to me before. And I've never been hired for a gig because of who I am and what I know and not what I look like."

"But what you look like sure didn't hurt your chances."

"Yeah, but at the audition, when I was actually involved in a conversation with Wil and George Takei and holding my own, I don't know if I can really describe what that felt like."

"It felt like you were where you were supposed to be, didn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess it did."

"Penny, I kinda know Leonard. He's not going to understand that. I think he expects to be the center of your universe. He wants you to need him."

"For a long time I thought I was okay with that. But I'm finding things out about him that I don't really like very much."

"Like…"

"Ever since I started working with Sheldon, before you got back Alex, Leonard has been trying to undermine it. He keeps accusing Sheldon of doing something underhanded. And he's sure that Missy is going to run back to Texas any day now."

"And…

"Don't tell Sheldon, but I overheard part of what he said the other night. Nobody has ever spoken about me like that. I know how much he really cares about me. And I know Missy is here for the long haul. What's going on with her and Sheldon and the baby is really working for all of them. I don't think I've ever seen Sheldon happier."

"Penny, you kind of sped right through the Sheldon and you part."

"Yeah, I guess I did that on purpose. I just don't even want to think about that until I figure out me and Leonard."

"Can you even go back to living in that tiny apartment with him?"

"I don't think so. Telling him that is part of what I still need to figure out."

"The offer we made before is serious. If you want to stay with us you can stay as long as you like. Permanently if you want."

"You don't want to do that. You guys are a new couple. You don't need a third wheel hanging around all the time."

"How about we figure that out when the time comes. Just know that it's a legitimate option. Besides, there's a three-bedroom apartment available on the top floor that we've had our eye on. And it has exclusive access to the roof. The two of us can't quite swing it but if we had a third…"

"Okay, I'll think about it."

"And back to Leonard."

"I'm going to tell him that we shouldn't be living together yet. That we aren't really ready for that."

"Penny, you know that's only a part of what's wrong."

"I know. Finding out what he really did to Sheldon in the Arctic and how he completely got away with it… it really bothers me. Now I know why he never talked about it. It's like I don't really know him. And when I think about the last seven years and all of the stuff that's happened between us, I'm not sure I can just sweep that stuff under the rug like he can."

"Penny, I really haven't wanted to say anything about this. I didn't think there was really any point…"

"Spit it out, Alex."

"The thing that almost happened between me and Leonard a while ago…it was just as much him as it was me."

"I figured that. Leonard tried to act all innocent but I know he turned into a kind of horndog over the past few years."

"Sweetie, that wasn't the only time Leonard tried to make a move."

"Tell me."

"Last week, when he first met me, before he knew I was with Alex, he gave us both this really weird look. Like he thought he had an opportunity."

"Yeah, Leonard thinks he's really cool with his "puppy dog fuck me" look which is about as subtle as a sledgehammer."

"Penny, Nora and I talked about it. And now that we're kind of becoming friends… We both think you marrying Leonard is a mistake. A big mistake."

"I'm starting to think that myself, but I'm not totally there yet. Leonard has been there for me for a really long time. And I do love him. At least I love the Leonard I thought I knew. And I believe that he loves me."

"Except when he found someone else who he thought was more easily available."

"Yeah, like Priya or Sheldon's slut professor friend or Leslie Winkle or Dr. Stephanie."

"Or me."

"I wasn't gonna say that Alex."

"It's okay. Real friends are honest about stuff like that."

"So that's kind of where I'm at right now. It's still a little confusing. I figure I'll talk to my therapist Melanie tomorrow and then hash this out with Leonard on Tuesday."

"What are you going to do till then? If I know Leonard he'll be at our office door when we get there tomorrow morning."

"Yeah, I figured that too. But I have to put him off. I've got a bunch of work on my desk and I'm gonna be tied up. Plus tomorrow Sheldon has the baby in the morning and that means we have lunch with Missy. And I can't leave Sheldon alone in the office or let him walk across the campus with the baby alone."

"I don't understand," Nora responded.

"Yeah, I kind of picked up on what's been going on," added Alex.

"Nora, for some reason the girl grad students have always had a thing for Sheldon. They're always offering him free meals and to help him out with his work and…"

"Remember, I know a lot of those girls, Penny. Be blunt, they want to fuck him."

"Yeah, but Sheldon being Sheldon he's never really picked up on it. And Amy did a pretty good job of scaring them off."

"Something Dr. Fowler really didn't have to work very hard at."

"Yeah, anyway, Sheldon with a baby in a Babybjorn is sort of like putting honey out for fire ants. Whenever he has the baby there is like a never-ending stream of hot young grad students bringing him food, offering to babysit, and I suspect making other offers he's either ignoring or doesn't understand. If I let him walk across the campus with the baby without me as protection we might never see him or the baby again."

"Wow. Sheldon's cute and all but…"

"Yeah, it's kind of crazy. Anyway, that kind of means my day is committed tomorrow and then I have therapy. Junior is still at my place and he's leaving Tuesday morning, so I think I'd like to stay with you guys again tomorrow night. I have a wardrobe thing for Wil's show in the afternoon and I figure I'll deal with Leonard after that."

"And you think Leonard is going to go along with that."

"I'm not gonna give him much of a choice."

A/N: This was another one that was tough to get right. I hope that I communicated that Penny is still waking up to her evolving situation and she's figuring out that decisions she made when she was in a completely different state of mind may no longer make sense.

Next: Amy and Leonard try to insert themselves back into the picture with unexpected results.