A/N: Okay so they will be on the train to Philadelphia. I wanted to explain at the beginning why Amy has never been anywhere on the east coast even though she went to Harvard, I did not forget that. Anyway this is a filler chapter with some plot movements but not a whole lot. I hope you enjoy.
I don't own any of it. I wish I did because I would write things differently.
Even though Amy had gone to college near Boston, she had never traveled far from campus. She never had anyone to travel with. Her roommate seemed to go everywhere. Every weekend, Amy was left alone while she would to New York, Philadelphia, and even one weekend to Miami. Was Amy ever invited? Of course not. She was considered the weird girl who lived with the most popular girl in the dorm. That was the reason she chose to live off campus after her first year. Now she was traveling across the country with her boyfriend. She really wanted to go back and tell her 15 year old self it would get better.
Unfortunately, since they were traveling over night she didn't get to see the country. They found their room and settled in for the night. They decided to continue watching Buffy until Amy fell asleep around 11. Sheldon decided to stay up a little bit longer so he could do some research. He felt better about his plan after speaking with Penny the night before. He had no doubt Amy would say yes and Penny had confirmed that but something Leonard had said made him think twice. What if she wanted to plan everything herself? What if Disney wasn't her idea of the perfect place to have it? Originally he had thought about doing it at Universal Studios. After all, they had the Marvel Superhero section and Harry Potter, what could be better. But no, it wasn't romantic enough. Sure the guys would love it, but this was about Amy not them. Amy would love Disney. What girl wouldn't want Cinderella's Castle as a back drop for such an event? It was absolutely the perfect place.
He had a few details that only he could iron out without the help of his friends. He had the guys worrying about the travel plans for everyone. Penny and Bernadette were in charge of the dresses. He had told Penny that Amy's favorite color was green so they should wear green dresses. Penny argued and said Amy wanted lavender dresses for Bridesmaids but Sheldon insisted on green. She said she would think about it. He was left with the proposal and the rings. He had the proposal planned out. He knew when he asked Mr. Fowler's permission he was doing the right thing. His mother and Meemaw had taught him that. It might be a bit old fashion for some, but he had to do it. Once he had the permission, he just needed the rings. His Meemaw had insisted that he use her engagement ring. He didn't want to take it from her but she was insistent. She said she would have it sent to the hotel in Philadelphia so he would have it in plenty of time. She knew it would be good luck for him. And even though she had not yet met Amy, she knew she loved her already. If her Moonpie loved her, she was good enough for her.
Mary was so excited. She knew that Sheldon was in love. She could tell from the way he looked at her. She didn't want him to live with her before they got married but if he had done it, she would have dealt with it. He was right, she got over the fact that Missy and George had lived with their significant others. But she always thought Sheldon was different. He always respected her wishes. Maybe it was because he had left at such a young age. He just followed the rules she had set at home and never looked back. He always turned to her for advice. He hadn't been doing that recently though. She chalked it up to Amy. She saw such a difference in her son in the last 4 years. She never thought Sheldon would open himself up so much and she was grateful. How she ever could have thought Amy was some kind of harlot she would never know. She loved her son. And for that Mary would be forever grateful.
So all Sheldon had to worry about were wedding rings. He knew they needed to do more shopping so he spent the next hour finding a place they could go shop that would not seem suspicious to Amy. He knew a mall would be the best place because it would have many stores. They could split up and do the shopping. He found the King of Prussia mall seemed to have a wide variety of jewelry stores and many clothing stores. It also had the added bonus of a Cheesecake Factory. He actually missed that place. He had to determine how far away it was from the hotel they would be staying at though. SEPTA seemed to go everywhere but he wasn't sure how far outside the city it would take them. He was so engrossed in the search he hadn't heard Amy stir until she spoke.
"What are you still doing up?" She asked. "It's after midnight."
"I was doing some research about Philadelphia. I realized we may need to stop and get more clothing, seeing as we are headed to Florida. The average temperature at this time of year is around 90 and there is the added humidity. I was thinking we could find a mall and go shopping when we get there."
"Well I am sure there are plenty of malls in Philadelphia, why research?"
"I was looking for a Cheesecake Factory. I kind of miss that place."
"Did you find one?"
"As a matter of fact I did and it is located in a mall. So we can kill two birds as they say. The only problem is it seems it is quite a distance from our hotel. I am reconsidering renting a car."
"Well why don't we worry about that in the morning."
"I suppose that makes sense."
"Good now come to bed." She said.
Amy woke up first the next morning. She knew Sheldon had been up later than usual so she let him sleep. She decided to check her email. She logged into his computer and looked through the various emails. She had a few from colleagues asking her some questions about the research they had just completed. She sent back her replies with the answers they needed. She had an email from President Seibert with confirmation of her vacation which was to end June 27. She was expected back June 30 and her next study would begin July 7. There was an email from her dad asking how her trip was going. He also asked when they would be returning as her mother wanted to plan and dinner party. She sent her reply saying they would be home somewhere around June 15 and let him know she still had two weeks after for vacation so anytime was good. Sheldon was off until at least August 1 so he would have no prior commitment either.
The last email was from Bernadette. She inquired about the trip and asked how they were doing. She also had a strange request for her dress size. Amy found that odd, but Bernadette explained that she and Penny were out dress shopping and wanted to be sure the dresses they had found would come in her size. Amy didn't have an abnormal size and most dresses would come in it but she didn't question her friend. Maybe they were just thinking about having the dresses custom made and she needed measurements. So Amy let Bernadette know she was welcome to use the dress she had worn at their wedding as a guide. She knew it still fit.
Sheldon woke up and saw Amy was on the computer. He momentarily panicked and then remembered he had cleared the history. He knew Amy was sharing the computer with him and he did not want her to see the jewelry stores he was searching. He came up behind her, wrapped his arms around her and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"Good morning beautiful." Amy would never tire hearing that from him. "What are you looking at?" He asked her.
"Well I wanted to check out the mall you were searching last night but it seems you have cleared the history, so I was checking my email."
"Oh well I do that from time to time. Just so no one can see my browsing history."
"Why what are you looking up?" Amy asked him, suspiciously.
"Well when I was doing the research for you know, I didn't need anyone seeing that, so I got in the habit of clearing my searches. You know how Leonard can be."
"I guess that makes sense."
He breathed a sigh of relief that she actually had bought that. Well it did make sense and he had cleared the history when he did do that search but it never became a habit.
"So what is this mall where we are going shopping?"
"It is called the King of Prussia mall. It is very large. I think we will find everything we need there and not have to go shopping at all in Florida, well except maybe for souvenirs."
"Sounds good."
"So did you receive anything good in your emails?" He was trying to change the subject.
"A few from some colleagues asking last minute questions about the project, one from Seibert confirming my vacation time, one from my dad asking when we were coming home because mom wants to have a dinner party and then a very strange one from Bernadette."
"What do you mean strange?"
"Well it started out normal, asking about our trip and how we were doing but then she asked my dress size."
"Why would she do that?" Sheldon was nervous because for some reason he just assumed they would be able to get a dress. He hadn't thought about her size.
"She said something about them looking at Bridesmaid dresses and being sure it came in my size."
"Oh I guess that makes sense." He thought that was a good ploy for the girls to use.
"But see it doesn't because I am an average size. I don't need an extra small gown or extra large gown. I am a normal height and weight so there really should be no reason a gown wouldn't come in my size."
"Oh well…"
"I thought maybe Penny had decided to have a custom gown made so I told Bernadette she could use the gown from her wedding as a guide. I had that fitted and it was perfect on me. I know it still fits."
"I liked the way you looked in that dress." He said to her.
"Thank you. I didn't like the color though, but it was Bernadette's wedding. I know if I ever get married, the girls will wear lavender." She purposely said if, so Sheldon wouldn't run away.
"I thought your favorite color was green? Why lavender dresses?"
"Green is my favorite color but I've always dreamed of having lavender dresses for my wedding. I can't see the color green I like as a dress."
"Well whatever you end up picking for your girls I am sure you will outshine them all." He knew he would have to give Penny a call and let her know he was wrong about the color they should wear.
"Was that a compliment? I think that is a first."
"Was it? I guess I have to change that about me. Have I told you how beautiful you are?
"You can tell me that as many times as you want. I will never tire hearing that from you."
"Well you are and I love you. I'm sure you will look perfect in a wedding dress." He had to steer this conversation away from weddings.
"I love you too."
"Shall we go to breakfast?"
"More like lunch." She laughed.
He looked at the time. "Oh I guess you are right. So shall we go?"
"Yes and then let's finish season 1 of Buffy before we get to Chicago. How long is our layover?"
"Just under 3 hours. We should arrive just before 3pm and the train to Philadelphia leaves at 5:45."
"What time will we arrive in Philadelphia tomorrow?"
"Just before 8:30 in the evening. Then we will take a train to our hotel. They run every hour towards the airport. Our stop is the one right before the airport. I researched that all last night."
"Good now let's get lunch."
They had an enjoyable lunch then headed back to their room. They decided against watching Buffy since it was so nice out and they could look out the window and enjoy the scenery of the country.
The train in Chicago arrived about 20 minutes late but it didn't matter as they had a few hours to spare. The boarded the train to Philadelphia around 5:30 and were on their way just before 6.
The trip to Philadelphia was fun. They watched the final few episodes of Buffy season 1 and continued to view the scenery. The arrived just after 8:15 and had 15 minutes until the train to the hotel.
They checked into the hotel and turned in for the night. The plan was to go to the Constitution Center, Liberty Bell and Independence Hall the next day. They would then drive to the King of Prussia mall and have dinner then go shopping. Sheldon was beginning to get nervous. He knew it was going to be a long week and a half.
Okay for those of you thinking I am doing all this research into Philadelphia, I am not. I am from the area so I know a little bit about it. King of Prussia mall is a big mall and there is a Cheesecake Factory there. SEPTA is the public transportation system. It would get them to the mall but we know how Sheldon is about buses. Any finally the trains to the airport do run on the hour. King of Prussia mall is about 30 miles from the Philadelphia airport so renting a car is the smart thing to do.
Okay that is my notes...reviews are always welcome. I will try and post the next chapter early next week if not sooner.