"You cannot easily drop a person out of your mind. Especially when that person has left a special mark on your heart."

-Anonymous

When Penny was sixteen, she would regularly sneak out if her house once her parents were finally asleep. In high school, she got mixed with wrong crowd, the one that included the jocks, drinkers, and the experimentalists. Because of her enchanting looks, boys were all over her, and it wasn't unusual for her to get invite to house parties the senior class would throw every now and then.

She usually went with a friend, and enjoyed herself with a glass full of vodka or some kind of drink. That's how Penny was introduced to alcohol. The upperclassmen were doing it, and she felt obligated to as well. After all, she was a sophomore invite to an all senior party, and she was fortunate enough that it wasn't a rouse or a prank. Penny thought of that because a year ago, her friend Mike came to one and ended up getting stripped down to his underwear and tied around the lamp-post in front of the school.

There was one particular party that was embedded in her mind for maybe as long as she lived. She remembered dancing with another guy friend named John, when someone slipped a little too much alcohol in her red solo cup. Penny wasn't thinking straight and was very drunk. She slurred her words and her inhibitions lessened gradually throughout the night. One of the seniors thought it would be funny to mess with her friend and so he dragged John, who was smart enough to not consume alcohol, away from the intoxicated blonde.

Penny saw them circling the defenseless boy as they began insulting and throwing garbage at him. She was too drunk to stop them before it was too late. John had called them out and one thing led to another. What she remembered that morning was her parents picking her up from the police station and informing her that John was almost beaten to death and currently in a coma.

A part of her felt like it was her fault for inviting him to tag along. She should have been responsible for her actions, and now one of her dearest friends would probably never wake up again. Penny would visit him in the hospital as often as she could, and cried her eyes out beside his unconscious body. She had no idea how he felt as he was being kicked and punched. She didn't do anything, and he probably felt betrayed and alone.

If she could go back and change things, the first thing was to never take that first sip of alcohol. Penny would often hide a bottle of liquor from her parents and indulge in it while they were away. If she hadn't been drinking that night, John would still be living and breathing at this second. She was lucky that his parents didn't blame her for his death but how she consumed alcohol. They were lying, she felt. It was her fault and they knew it.

The rest of high school flew fast and next thing you know, here she was holding a man who was in the same state as John was before he passed away, and she wanted him to live.

"Keep pressure on the wound, he's still bleeding a lot." Penny instructed the man, who she now knew as Mark, as she moved up to place her head on her chest. She couldn't hear a heartbeat and clock was ticking.

CPR. Penny could do that. She distinctively remembered health class one day, and how she was taught how to kneeling down next to Sheldon's body, she pressed her hands down on the area where his heart was and push up and down as hard as she can. She leaned into his face and blew air into his opened mouth, before attempting to restart his heart again.

With the pressure she was applying on his chest, Sheldon would have woken up with more bruises. Penny was not about to let him die in the cold streets, mentally cursing the ambulance that was still on its way. She was doing her best, alternating pumping and blowing.

By the fourth try, she felt his mouth twitch when she placed hers over it. Penny shook him gently. "Sheldon?" In the corner of her eye, she saw his arm jerk, so she shook his body again. That's when his eyes suddenly opened as he inhaled sharply through his mouth, causing Penny to smile. He was groaning and moaning in pain and that's when the EMTs finally arrived. She cradled his body in her arms. "You're going to be okay." She whispered to him.

Her eyes were locked into Sheldon's face, as he tried to sit up from the concrete. An emergency responder pulled her away as another one pulled a gurney out of the ambulance. "Ma'am, we'll take it from here." The responder tugged on her arm gently, wanting her to leave him in better hands. As she was being pulled away, Penny watched as Sheldon was strapped on the gurney before they wheeled him into the vehicle and the sirens blared as it drove off.

A few minutes later, a police car pulled in front of Penny before a large built man came out of the driver's side with a notepad. "Good evening, miss. My name is Officer Garson and I would like to ask a couple of questions about this incident if that is fine with you." Penny nodded, not making eye contact with the police officer. "Alright. For starters, what is your name?"

"Penny. Penny Queen." Garson wrote her name down on his notepad as Penny crossed her arms, still covered in Sheldon's blood. She was glad that he seemed fine and on his way for professional help, but she didn't enjoy being pulled away without checking if he was really okay.

"Do you know the victim's name?" He asked, tilting his head to meet Penny's stare.

"Sheldon, but that's all I know. I just saw him laying on the streets half-dead. Never met or seen him before."

He wrote her words down. "Alright. Did you see how this began?" Penny shook her head and sighed. She really needed to shower, change, and sleep. It was one hell of a day. Her first official day in Pasadena ended in her being covered in blood, and luckily, it wasn't hers. "You want to me to call someone for you?"

"Can you take me to go see him?" She said without hesitation in her voice.

Garson checked his watch. "My shift ends in a half an hour. I suppose I could take you where he's being kept. Hop in, but do you need me to call someone? Friend? Family? Let them know you're alright before they think you're missing?"

"I suppose." Garson smiled and handed Penny his phone before starting the car and pull out into the streets.

The phone ringed about twice before it was finally picked up. "Hello?"

"Tyler, it's Pen." She said.

"Penny? Where are you? I was getting worried! You weren't answering your phone. You were supposed to come home hours ago and I thought you just got lost. What happened?" Tyler sounded very concerned, and she loved that about him. The guys she usually dated would care a bit if she was late by an hour or so.

"Listen, I'm fine. My phone died. I missed the bus and I was walking home when I heard this guy calling for help. He was badly beaten and I tried to stabilize him. He was knocked out before the ambulance came so I had to give him CPR and I'm on my way to see him now, make sure he's okay and well." Penny closed her eyes when she began remembering how traumatized and hurt he looked. She could still hear him gasping for the air that came easily to her.

"Wow. Pen, that's a heroic thing you did there. But just come home. He's with the people who can help him and I just want you beside me." Tyler said, and Penny sighed.

"Thanks, but I really want to make sure." Garson whispered to Penny telling her to put it on speaker phone.

"Sir, we are a couple blocks away. I'll be happy to drive Penny home after she sees the man."

She smiled for the first time after the whole situation and mouthed a thank you to the officer. "I'll see you later."

"Be safe. I'll wait all night for you." Tyler then hung up the phone.

Garson parked the car in the lot and the two made their way inside the hospital. Before exiting the car, he let Penny borrow his sweater to cover up her blood stained uniform, which she gladly accepted.

He approached the front desk where a nurse was typing on the computer. "Hi, my name is Officer Garson, and I'm looking for a patient who was recently checked in. Guy's name is Sheldon."

"What's his last name?" The nurse asked.

The cop glanced behind Penny, who shrugged her shoulders. "We have no clue, but he was probably wheeled in a half an hour ago. Looked like he was mugged or something." The nurse nodded and told him to give her a second as she pulled up the patient they were describing.

"We have a Sheldon Cooper in surgery right now. Lacerations along his torso and a swollen eye apparently. Few broken bones and lots of cuts. Yikes, I can only imagine what this guy has been through." She said, reading it from the computer screen. "Are you related to him?"

They shook their heads before Penny stepped forward. "I kind of brought him back to life when he passed out."

"That's incredible, because I overheard if he wasn't resuscitated back there he wouldn't have made it. The poor guy suffered a blow to the head and they're afraid part of his skull is fractured."

"Is he going to be okay?" Penny asked.

"You saved him just in time, hon. But I can't say. Doctors are still with him back there. If you would like to, you can sit over there and wait until they come out with updates." The nurse pointed towards the waiting room where a two bespectacled people sat impatiently. Penny nodded. "Alright. Well I hope he's fine."

Penny and Garson approached the waiting area and took a seat next to the big door which had all the hospital rooms on the other side. It was only the two of them, plus the other two who looked just as worried. The short guy was standing up and tapping his foot on the floor with his arms crossed, while the frumpy looking lady seemed like she had been crying as she sat on the chairs.

They were a few feet away from them, and Penny could overhear their conversation. She pretended that she wasn't paying any attention, but she had to listen when they said the name Sheldon.

"I can't believe this is happening. It's my fault. He walked me to my car that was parked a few blocks down the street and he could have been followed from there." The woman started to sob, and the man sat beside her, wrapping his arms around her body.

"It's not your fault Amy. The only one who is responsible for this is the man who did this for him. If only I wasn't gone for a few hours, if only I had stayed home with him, maybe this wouldn't have happened."

Amy patted the shorter man's knee. "The only thing we can do is wait until the doctor has something for us. Where are Howard and Bernadette?"

"On their way. He's in so much pain and if he wasn't asleep, he'll probably complain about being in the hospital." He tried to lighten the mood with a joke, but failed.

Penny watched them two talking and guessed that the woman, Amy, was probably either his girlfriend or sister, and the short dude sounded like his roommate.

"How'd they find him?" Amy asked, as she sat up straighter, clutching tissues in her hand.

"Cops said a woman and a man dialed 911 before she resuscitated him when he blacked out." The short guy answered. "That woman, she saved Sheldon's life. I should have told the cops that I wanted to thank her personally."

Penny smiled, but didn't say a word.

"Yes, Leonard. Without her, he would be gone and I would be all alone again." Amy cried again, and Leonard tried to comfort her.

Garson leaned into Penny's ear. "Want me to tell them or you?" He whispered.

"Not yet." She simply said.

It wasn't about two hours later when the doctor entered the waiting area with, looking at a clipboard with notes and charts attached to it. "My name is Dr. Barnett... Leonard?" She said after she looked up and realized who was in front of her. "Wow, I haven't seen you in a while."

"Hello." Leonard said shyly and quietly.

"Are you here for a Sheldon Cooper?" Penny's head jolted up and listened to what she was saying. She saw Leonard nod as the doctor began flipping through the pages of her clipboard. "Good news is he's alive and breathing properly, and we think he'll wake up soon. No brain damage whatsoever, although he did suffer a terrible concussion and when he wakes up, he'll probably have short-term amnesia. His heart stopped beating because of all the stress that was in him. What else, oh! Bad news is he has to wear a cast on his left hand. He lost a lot of blood from the gash along his stomach, but not enough that he can't survive. We managed to fix that part of him. Swollen right eye, and minor cuts and bruises along his body. He suffered hell through this beating."

They soaked up the information given before Amy spoke. "When can we see him?"

"He's asleep right now; we had to anesthetized him when they wheeled him in for us to work on that laceration. I'll say that in maybe an hour, it'll wear off. We didn't give him that much." Dr. Barnett glanced over to Leonard. "And how do you know the patient, Leonard?"

"He's the crazy guy that I'm living with. The one I talked to you about when we were... You know... Together." He avoided eye contact with her. "Can we see him now?"

"Sure. Sure. Follow me." She led the two down the hallway where they disappeared.

Penny was still sitting on the chair. Garson tapped her lightly on the shoulder. "Didn't you want to check up on him, too?" She nodded. "Then, why are you still here and why didn't you tell them you were the woman that saved their friend's life."

"I thought I would be barging into their lives. I don't even know the guy and now I'm here wanting to see him. It feels wrong. I did my job and I should go home now. None of my business to follow-up." Penny, exhausted and worn out, didn't know what she was talking about.

Garson sighed. "He owes his life to you for saving him. At least introduce yourself to him. If I was him, I would want to know who gave me CPR after collapsing. Come on." He stood up and held his hand out. Penny looked up and graciously accepted it, and pulled herself off the seat.

Dr. Barnett approached the front desk and the two walked towards her. "Excuse me, what room is Sheldon Cooper being held at?" Penny asked.

"Are you related to or know him? We can't just let anyone enter inside their hospital room-"

"She's the woman who saved your patient's life back in the alley." The nurse interrupted her and gave Penny a smile. "She wants to make sure he's alright."

"Um, okay. But you have to get past the other two that came in already. If they let you in, great. They don't then it's okay. We'll email you an update or something. By the looks of it, you'll probably see him."

"Thank you." They began to make their way down the hallway when Dr. Barnett stopped them.

"You did a great job at resuscitating him. If it weren't for you, he would have been dead. So, thank you."

Garson turned to Penny who waved goodbye to the doctor. They reached Sheldon's room, which had a small window on the door. Penny peeked her head in and saw Amy holding Sheldon's hand while Leonard talked on the phone. She overheard him say that he'll leave in a few minutes before hanging up.

Penny pressed her ear close to the door. "Howard and Bernadette's tire blew out on their way here. I'm going to pick them up. You sure you don't want to come along? He'll probably won't wake up while we're gone. You know how stubborn he is. If he wanted to, he'll wake up next month." She heard Leonard say, and Amy mumbled something that she couldn't make out. "Your choice. I'll be back. Text me if anything happens."

She stood up and pretended she wasn't eavesdropping when Leonard exited out of the room. He gave her a slight nod before moving on. Penny peeked her head in again, only to retract when Amy opened the door. "Excuse me, miss." She said, then Amy followed Leonard's path.

"You should go in." Garson suggested. Penny bit the inside of her cheek as she reached the door handle and opened it.

Her foot stepped inside, as she examined the room. His heart rate monitor was the only machine present, and he had an IV needle on his arm. Sheldon's eye was still swollen and his cuts were still there. Penny glanced down to his hand where he now had a cast in it. Instead of his torn up clothes, he was now wearing a hospital gown, and looked peaceful as he slept.

Penny sat down next to the bed, and stared at his non-moving body. The corner of his mouth twitched, and he brought his hand up to his chest as he stirred on the bed. "Sheldon?"

With the sound of his name, Sheldon cautiously opened his eyes, inspecting the room he was in. He stopped when his eyes met Penny as she gave him a small wave with her hand. "Do you need anything?"

He licked his lips. "Water." Sheldon, with a voice raspy and low, requested.

Penny got out of her chair and walked to the water cooler, getting a cup for Sheldon. She then made her way back and helped him sit up more to take a sip. Once Sheldon laid down on his bed again, he tried to move his hands, which seemed painful to watch as he groaned with every movement. He turned to her again. "Who are you?"

"My name's Penny."

Sheldon coughed. "Do I know you?"

She paused for a second, wanting to come up with an easy explanation of what happened. Penny did overhear Dr. Barnett informing them of temporary memory loss. "Umm, I was walking home from work a few hours ago when you called out for help. I followed the sound of your pleas and that's when I found you laying down on the ground so helplessly. You were most likely mugged out there. Do you remember any of this?" Sheldon shook his head. "Okay. Well, I-um we, there was another guy who came to us, tried to help you. Then your heart stopped beating and I was afraid that it would have been too late. I administered CPR on you, and now you're here."

Penny, who was still standing beside his bed, took a seat next to him. Sheldon followed her movements with weary eyes. He opened his mouth to speak, only having his head face the door as Leonard and Amy entered the hospital room. Penny turned around and gave a soft smile. "Hi, um, who are you?" Amy asked, approaching the mysterious woman sitting next to her boyfriend.

"I'm Penny. I see Sheldon has more company, so I better head out." When she started to stand up, Sheldon softly gripped her wrist and gazed at her face.

He slowly pulled her down back to her seat. "Please, stay." He then turned his head forward to look at the group in front of him. "Who are you?"

"You don't recognize me?" Leonard inched closer to Sheldon's bed. "It's me, Leonard. I'm your roommate. That's Amy, your girlfriend. Howard and Bernadette are over there. Raj is currently in San Francisco attending a symposium." He pointed to each and every one of their friends.

Sheldon looked at them with a blank expression, trying to remember any of his so-called friends. Nothing was coming up. "I apologize. I seem to have no recollection of any of you whatsoever."

"So, Penny? Um, how do you know Sheldon?" Leonard asked, not noticing that she was the woman behind him and Amy earlier in the waiting room.

"Are you the one who brought Sheldon back to life?" Amy walked forward, standing next to Penny. She nodded, and Amy smiled, brought her arms around the blonde's body, hugging her for all she's worth. "Thank you so much! Without you, Sheldon wouldn't be here in front of us at this second. Even though his memory's impaired, at least we still have him."

Penny returned Amy's tight hug and chuckled. "You're welcome." She yawned, looking down to Sheldon, who was glancing at her. "Listen, I know you guys want to help Sheldon. I have to leave now since it's getting late and my boyfriend is waiting for me back at our apartment." She made her way to the exit, not before receiving hugs from his friends and a bunch of 'thank you's.

"Thank you again, Penny." Sheldon called out for her as she left the room.

Garson took her home past midnight.

As soon as she entered the apartment, she dashed into the shower and scrubbed herself clean. Penny threw away her Cheesecake Factory uniform, seeing that it was stained with blood and unable to clean it off. Afterwards, she ate a late dinner with Tyler, but stayed quiet throughout the meal. Once she brushed her teeth, climbed into bed, and kissed Tyler goodnight, she closed her eyes. That night, she dreamed of herself saving Sheldon's life. The difference was that he did not make it and blamed herself for not trying hard enough.

Penny didn't know this, but seeing him in the hospital would not be the last time they have an encounter.

A/N:

I'm not 100% happy with how this came out, but I tried my best to explain things. I'm no medical professional, so I apologize if I made any mistakes during the CPR and hospital scene. I also apologize for any grammar and spelling mistakes. Thank you all for who read and reviewed. I'll update soon after I proofread the next chapter thoroughly.

And just to clarify to some people who are confused, the group has never met Penny before until this chapter. The characters will also do things that are OOC for them, just giving you a heads up.

It's not the end for our story yet so stick around.