Chapter 30 - Waiting
The next few days were the same for Leonard and Howard, up every morning for exercising, then the rest of the day training, dinner either with Major Martin or at the lab, work a couple hours in the lab and finally talking with their wives before falling asleep to do it all again the next day. This became their routine through the whole first week of training and it was the reason they were sleeping in the visiting officers quarters, with maid service, instead of the barracks, because while the other trainees cleaned and polished their barracks in the evening, Howard and Leonard worked on the suit, currently the Army's highest priority now. The Army wanted the suit up and running, as soon as possible, they planned a demonstration to a select group of congressmen on the military appropriations committee, so that special funding could be diverted to fast-track the suit through military development. Leonard and Howard were key to that plan, so while going through training, they also worked on the suit, Major Martin there to make sure they had all they needed to accomplish their task.
Bernadette and Penny, both used a simple coping method to help them make it through every day, without their men, they worked as much as possible to keep their minds occupied and off their husbands. Bernadette worked long days, even making her managers, concerned about the hours she was putting in, however, they said nothing because of the rapid progress she was making on her projects with all the hours she was putting in. Penny worked as many shifts she could get at the Cheesecake Factory, sometimes working double shifts when they became available, being just as tired and worn out as her friend, because it made her think less about Leonard, when she had fatigue occupying her mind. That was girls routine, the bright spot in it all was the short evening calls to their husbands, the sounds of their voices and the knowledge that they were okay, the only thing that let them sleep soundly at night.
Thursday morning for Penny was especially bad, because she had the whole day off, only made worse because she woke up shortly after Bernadette left, and the feeling of missing Leonard pressing down on her, creating a mood of loneliness in her. Penny knew this feeling, she had felt it twice before, the first time when Leonard went to the North Pole, it had started after he had been gone over a month, and intensified as the time dragged on. It had forced her to realize her feelings towards Leonard, that he was more than a friend, he was someone she needed in her life, so when he came home she started the relationship with him. The second time was when Priya had him break off contact with her, this time it was more of an emotional emptiness, because he was only still next door, but the pain was similar, so she would have the girls over a lot and self medicate with wine to get by the pain. She now felt the pain from being physically and emotionally separated from him, being married to him was making it worse, he was hers and she wanted him. It was now coming on two weeks and the thought of it being over another two weeks before she could hold him again, was driving her nuts, as she pulled the covers over her head and groaned to herself. "Oh God."
Penny laid there for another half hour before she forced herself up, she had knew this would be a bad day, so she decided to run errands to keep herself busy. She had to run to different places, that Leonard had identified and get them to add her as his wife, it was something she had to do and she hoped it occupied her whole day. She had a marriage license, the Army had gave them, but there was paperwork she had to do and the more she thought about it the more she wanted to hurry and get it started. She quickly got ready and headed down to downtown Pasadena, to the clerk of courts, to get her military marriage license, registered with the county. Thursday, it seemed, was a good day to do this and she was seen quickly, finishing before way before noon, so she headed to the Department of Motor Vehicles, her drivers license was next. Penny was now on a roll, so she went to Cal Tech to surprise Amy for lunch and then visit the personnel department, Leonard had already notified them, she was going to get registered as Leonard's spouse.
Amy enjoyed Penny's company, the girls seemed always busy lately so lunch with her Bestie was a welcomed change. "So what have you been doing?"
Penny shrugged, "Working mostly, as much as I can. It keeps my mind off things, like how much I miss Leonard."
"You have separated from him before, is it really that bad?" Amy cautiously asked, she didn't want to upset her friend.
"Yeah, I have, but it is different now. I don't know, just different." Penny sighed.
"How?" Amy was now curious.
"It is hard to explain, I resisted committing to Leonard for so long because I was scared about all the permanency it represented, but suddenly now we are married, and I had him for such a short time, him not being here makes everything so lonely. I feel so different than before, I like that I am married to him, knowing we are a team and we will always be there for each other, makes me feel so good inside. I never knew it could feel like this, I was so concentrating on the bad things of commitment, I didn't even think of the good things."
Amy nodded to her friend. "I'm so happy for you guys."
Penny gave her friend a small smile. "Thanks Ames."
After lunch, Penny went to do her final errand, the bank, again Leonard had notified them of being married and had sent them notarized paperwork to include her on his accounts. The people at the bank were real nice and they even made her some checks for their now joint checking account, Penny quickly becoming fascinated with them when she saw Penelope Hofstadter below Leonard's name. However Penny almost dropped the checks when they gave her an account summary before she left, Leonard had a lot of money in his account. Leonard had never talked about money and she never asked, it didn't really matter between them, but it still surprised her he had so much, she would have to talk to him about it when he returned, she thought.
Penny left the bank, her errands now done, and it was only 2 PM, so slowly the helpless feeling about what she could do next came back. She sat in her car wondering what to do, Bernadette wouldn't be home for hours and the thought of being alone so long depressed her, but then it hit her, she should go back to her/their apartment and move some of Leonard's stuff in. With that thought firmly entrenched in her mind, Penny headed off in her car, a little smile on her face as she drove, thinking about all her husband's nerdy stuff and how it would look in their apartment. Penny actually got a little excited the more she thought about Leonard's stuff, she missed him and the thought of being around his stuff for a little while made her feel good inside, like she would be in his world for a little bit, it made her want to go there even more now.
It was just before 3 PM when Penny walked into Leonard's room, and the feeling that came over her, she would never be able to describe, it brought a smile to her face and a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach. She stood for a few minutes, just looking around, taking it all in before she could move, then instead of packing things she just walked around the room touching all the stuff that made the room Leonard's. She ended up standing over his bed, it was still rumpled from before that Friday night and a set of last clothes he had worn, tossed on top of the bedspread, where he had changed that Friday. She found herself just staring at his T-shirt laying there, and before she could actually think, she pulled off her top and bra, putting his shirt over her bare chest, wanting to feel it against her skin. It actually still smelled like him and she wrapped her arms around herself and closed her eyes, dreamily thinking of how it felt to be held by him, again.
Amy and Sheldon walked up the stairs to 4A, Amy had been Sheldon's only form of transportation since Leonard and Howard had disappeared. Sheldon really didn't believe they were in the Army and thought it only to be another prank, like the one they pulled two weeks ago when they sent them to Oxnard. His mind was thinking about the punishment that he would have to dole out to them when he touched the door knob and the realization came over him that his apartment door was unlocked. His eyes shot to his girlfriend, "Amy the door is unlocked." the thought of being robbed again immediately came to his mind.
"Sheldon maybe you forgot to lock it."
Sheldon gave her a look of derision, the thought of him forgetting absurd to his mind.
"Sorry Sheldon, I share you concern. Should we call the police."
Sheldon opened the door a little and peeked in, almost immediately seeing the keys in the bowl, with the Hello Kitty key fob. He then looked at Amy, muttering only one word, "Penny."
They both entered the apartment looking around for the blonde neighbor while still a little bit of doubt in their mind on who the intruder was until they found her. They cautiously checked out the bathroom and then looked into Sheldon's room before they finally moved to Leonard's room and peeked inside, finding the blonde wrapped in Leonard's sheets and holding his pillow, sound asleep in his bed. So they both quietly moved back to the living room, to talk about the current situation.
"Amy we need to wake her up, she doesn't belong here."
"Sheldon, she sort of does, that is Leonard's room and she is his wife."
Sheldon stood there a few seconds thinking about her words. "Does that mean she is moving in with him?"
Amy gave him a small smile. "No, that means he will be moving in with her." The expression on Sheldon's face, made Amy's heart break for him a little.
"Leonard is leaving me. He can't, that violates the Roommate Agreement."
"Honey, he is married." Amy didn't realize she had even called him 'Honey' until the words were out of her mouth, but instead of being corrected, she saw how really upset he was when he said nothing to her about it.
Sheldon sat down in his spot, for a few moment s saying nothing, then slowly turned to look at Amy, "There is nothing I can do, is there? This is not like Priya and Leslie, Leonard will never pick me over Penny, will he?"
Again Amy's heart goes out for him as she shakes her head, "No, he loves her too much and they are married now, Penny loves him just as much. They are pair bonded and I can't see them ever separating again, he will never leave her side."
"Amy everyone seems to be leaving me, everyone, except you. Are you going to leave me, too?"
"No, I would never leave you." Amy gave him a small smile.
"Amy are we pair bonded?"
Amy stared at Sheldon, surprised at what he just said. "Sheldon do you think we are pair bonded?"
Sheldon thought for a minute. "You said you wouldn't leave me and I don't want to separate from you, so if I follow your definition of pair bonding, I would have to say we are pair bonded."
Amy again stared at Sheldon almost whispering, "Really?"
Sheldon, of course heard her, "Yes, I think so."
Amy smiled, "I….."
"What Amy? Did I say something wrong?" Sheldon looked at her confused.
"No, you actually said everything right." Amy still was sweetly smiling at him.
"Amy if I am understanding you correctly, you expect Leonard to move out soon."
Amy nodded, "Yes, as soon as he comes back from training. Penny said in about two more weeks."
"This will probably mean he will forget about all his obligations to me when he leaves. I will have to have to have him sign a neighbor agreement."
Amy suppressed a chuckle, she knew Penny would never let Leonard do that and she even wondered if Leonard would even consider it. "I don't think you can plan on that Sheldon, Leonard will probably be too obligated to Penny to sign a neighbor agreement."
Sheldon again thought for a moment. "I see your point, she does control him and if he lives with her, she will probably dictate what he can and cannot do. I have never had any luck getting her to sign any agreement, so she will probably not let him sign anything."
Amy nodded. "You are probably right."
Sheldon thought again, then looked at Amy. "I don't think I could find a roommate like Leonard again. I had three previous roommates and none of them lasted more than a month, until Leonard came along. I don't think I can do that again, they were all animals."
Amy sighed, "I'm sorry Sheldon."
Sheldon looked intensely at her, making Amy feel flushed. "Amy, there is only one logical answer, but I am reluctant to bring it up. It will need a very detailed and restrictive roommate agreement, but it is the only logical answer to this problem."
"What's that Sheldon." Amy was curious but she was still awed at the way Sheldon was staring at her.
"You Amy. You should be my roommate, it only makes sense."
Amy blinked, was she dreaming, did he hypnotize her, she couldn't be hearing him right. "I'm sorry what did you say."
"Amy please pay attention, this is serious. I said that you should be my roommate. We agree we are pair bonded, you are clean like myself, you already know me and I know you, it just makes logical sense."
"You want me to move in with you?" Amy whispered in shock.
"Amy, you would move into Leonard's room and we would share the rest of the apartment. Like I said we would have to have a very restrictive roommate agreement."
Amy just nodded, still reeling from what was now being discussed. "Of course, Sheldon."
"Good, I can work on a pre-move in agreement tonight. However the first requirement in it will be that you have to deal with Penny." Sheldon looked at the hallway leading to Leonard's room to emphasis the point.
Penny woke up about 7 PM, she felt rested, and comfortable being in Leonard's bed, though she still missed him horribly. She barely heard the TV playing in the living room, and looking at the clock she knew it was probably Sheldon, so she got up to face the music she was sure was to follow about her being in the apartment alone. The thought of changing back into her bra and top crossed her mind for a second, before it was quickly dismissed, she couldn't bear to take off his husband's shirt right now, and the thought that what she was wearing belonged to her husband, made a small smile form on her face.
"Hello Penny." Amy greeted, as she saw Penny emerge from the hallway. Amy immediately noticed Penny was wearing Leonard's shirt, but thought better than to say anything about it.
"Hi, sorry I fell asleep." She looked at the takeout boxes on the coffee table and suddenly felt hungry.
"No problem. Are you hungry, we got your usual." Amy then pulled a box out of the bag and pointed it at Penny.
Penny smiled, "Yes I am, thank you Amy." Penny then walked up and grabbed the box, sitting down in Leonard's chair, immediately again missing him. Little things like being squeezed in the chair with him or sitting in his lap crossed her mind, as she slowly ate her meal.
They all sat quietly and eating, while watching a show, her friends liked, on the National Geographic channel. Sheldon never saying much and Penny actually enjoying the silent company as she ate, curled up in Leonard's chair. Penny felt so comfortable in this chair, and she knew if her and Leonard ever moved somewhere else, that this chair was going with them. Sheldon could have the couch and his spot, but this chair was theirs and she was not ever going to part with it. It was a little after 8 PM when her phone started to vibrate in her pocket and she became excited as she excused herself to go back in Leonard's room to talk to her husband.
"Hi Sweetie, did you have a good day?" Penny was thrilled just to talk to him.
"Not bad, this stuff gets easier as you get use to it."
"Oh that's good. I want you to see something, so hold on." Penny sent a text picture to him then got back on the phone, "Did you get it? What do you think?"
"Well I got a picture of a driver's license with a picture of a very sexy blonde on it."
Penny giggled, "I know, that is my best drivers license photo ever, but that is not what you are suppose to see. Read the information on it."
"I sort of like the picture of the blonde, okay let me see…Oh! You got it changed. It is sort of cool, did I say that right?"
"Sweetie, I think it is cool too. I almost started to cry when they called 'Penelope Hofstadter' for me to pick it up, I was so happy."
Leonard smiled, "I'm very happy too."
"I know Sweetie."
"Were you able to do the rest of the stuff?"
"Yeah, I got up early and filed our wedding certificate, did the paperwork at Cal Tech, the drivers license you know about, and the bank, too."
"Good, since you are at the apartment, you need to exchange cars too. Take mine…I mean take our other car, so I don't worry about you breaking down somewhere, okay."
"Okay, sweetie, I'll take….our other car."
Penny talked with Leonard for over a half hour, she hated to end the call, but she knew he needed to sleep so she made him hang up. She then pulled his luggage bags out of his closet and packed all his clothes from his dresser drawers. She also, packed a small gym bag with some of his boxers and T-shirts, she knew she was being silly, but she planned to wear them as pajamas, the next two weeks, just because they were his. Penny then brought all the stuff to her apartment, locked it back up and drove Leonard's, no their other car, over to Bernadette's to finally go to sleep. Once in bed, she quickly sent a text to Leonard that she was there in bed, then laid down to sleep, today had turned out to be not such a bad day after all.