"You don't develop courage by being happy in your relationships everyday. You develop it by surviving difficult times and challenging adversity."

-Epicurus

Sheldon and Raj entered the Cheesecake Factory in good spirits. They had just returned from a model train show in Los Angeles and decided to stop by the restaurant for dinner. It was Sunday evening, and the two train enthusiasts wanted to catch up with Penny. She had been working longer hours, and they both knew that she did a big audition earlier in the day.

As they were seated at their usual table, Penny walked over to them, seeming a bit downcast. "Hey, guys. I wasn't expecting you today. How was the train show?"

"It was magnificent. I bought a new train set along with Raj," Sheldon answered gleefully, showing a box containing the train set he mentioned. "How was your day?"

Penny took a deep breath in. "I don't think I did so well on the audition. I flubbed a line or two and may have been too nervous. They probably noticed me shaking. It's just that this part I was auditioning for is huge, well to me it is. I got anxious and messed up on some parts. I wasn't well prepared as I thought I would."

Raj stood up from his seat and gave Penny a comforting hug. She smiled and he situated back down. "If I don't get this role, then I'm in big trouble. I'm behind on my bills and I told Tyler I didn't want to use his money anymore. It's his and I don't deserve any of it."

"What if I loan you money?" Sheldon suggested.

Penny immediately said no. "I just said that I don't want someone's money. I need to work hard for it."

The two men nodded, and Penny began taking their orders. Sheldon wanted his typical barbeque cheeseburger while Raj chose the meat lover's pizza with no meat. She excused herself to place their orders, leaving Raj and Sheldon alone.

"So, what are you doing for your birthday? It's a great time to discuss about it right now, and you know how much I love parties," Raj said.

Sheldon shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not into celebrating my birth with guests and birthday cake."

"Oh, come on. Ain't no party like a koothra-party. It's in a week, and you're finally turning 34!"

"Yes, I will be 34 years old yet still haven't obtained my Nobel Prize," Sheldon sulked.

As they waited for their meals, Stuart approached their table and greeted them before sitting beside Sheldon. He lifted his finger up in the air so none of them would speak as he pulled his bag up to his lap and started rummaging through it. He held in his hand an envelope, placing it in the middle of the table. The three stared at the envelope and each other.

Sheldon pointed his finger at it. "What's inside?"

"Gentlemen, you know how even if we tried so hard, we couldn't get Comic Con tickets for this year?"

Raj and Sheldon nodded, and Stuart sat up straighter, letting a smile appear on his face. "Thanks to a good customer of mine from the other day, I have inside that envelope four tickets to Comic Con 2014!"

"No way, dude!" Raj exclaimed as he opened up the envelope and looked over the tickets. "I can't believe you were able to get us tickets! I was so devastated when Sheldon told us that all tickets were sold out and we weren't able to attend this year. This has got to be the highlight of my life. I haven't missed this convention since I came to America."

Sheldon took hold of one of the tickets. "Who will be our fourth person accompanying us to San Diego?"

"I was thinking that we can bring Penny along." Stuart replied being hopeful about it. "Do you know if she's with anyone right now?"

Sheldon sharply turned his head. "She's with no one at this second."

"She's the first woman who didn't look at me with a threatening a face. I like that in a woman."

Sheldon raised his right hand and karate chopped Stuart in the shoulder. Stuart looked over to him in confusion.

"She's not for you!" Sheldon warned.

"Uh, okay. I'm not good at confrontations, so you can have her." Stuart said, and Sheldon was satisfied by his answer.

Penny emerged from the back of the restaurant with a tray with their orders. She handed Sheldon his burger and Raj his pizza. "How's it going Stuart? Can I get you anything?"

"I'm fine, thanks for asking and I'm not hungry," Stuart replied. Penny turned around but he called out for her. "Penny, are you interested in joining with us at Comic Con this year?"

"You guys got tickets?" Penny asked.

The three nodded excitingly.

"Wow. I don't know. I might have some auditions line up for the summer but I'll see if I can make it. Okay, I gotta go and wait on other tables. I really need the tips to be good this time. Bye guys!"

When Penny left the table, the men talked about their day. Sheldon couldn't hide his excitement over unboxing his new train set. Raj couldn't stop talking about the model trains he saw. Stuart wished that he was as enthusiastic with trains just like his friends. As Raj spoke, a tap on his shoulder caused him to turn his head behind.

He was face to face with a little boy with blonde hair and blue eyes, standing on top of his seat. The boy placed his tiny hands on Raj's face and giggled uncontrollably. Before Raj could say anything, a woman picked up the tot and held him in her arms. "I'm so sorry about that. Little Damien here loves going on adventures like getting out of his seat while mommy's on the phone." His mother smothered her child with kisses as he laughed. "I'm Emily." She extended her hand to him, and he graciously accepted, shaking it up and down.

Raj couldn't speak, so he signaled Stuart to sit beside him. He whispered his words in his ear.

"He says his name is Raj," Stuart said on behalf of his friend.

"Why can't you speak to me Raj?" Emily asked.

Raj whispered into Stuart's ear again. "I have selective mutism unfortunately. I can't speak to women."

Emily mouthed an "oh" before speaking again. "That's an interesting predicament you have. In all my years learning psychology, I've never known an actual person with selective mutism. Wow. Is it okay if we talk sometime?"

Raj gasped and quickly nodded. Emily smiled and wrote her number down on a piece of napkin before handing it to Raj. She bent down and picked up her son. "Great. I'll look forward to your text or calls or whatever." Emily waved goodbye, as did Damien, before exciting the Cheesecake Factory.

Stuart stared at him. "You picked up a girl at a restaurant and you didn't have to speak to her!"

Raj didn't bother to wipe the smug look on his face. "Like I've always said, the quiet ones are the most mysterious and intriguing ones."

Sheldon and Penny watched from the couch as Raj nervously paced around the apartment with his cell phone in his hand. He had requested their presence as soon as he received a text message from Emily an hour ago. Raj still hadn't responded to her yet, not sure on what to say. "I can't do it! Emily's really pretty and I'm bound to screw things up. It's inevitable, so it's probably better if I don't even bother."

Penny stood up and walked towards Raj. She lightly gripped on his wrist, causing them to look face to face. "Raj, you're a great man. You won't screw things up with her."

Raj shook his head and pointed to the wine bottle on top of the coffee table. "I would need to be drunk just to talk to her. Trust me, when I'm intoxicated, it's game over. I'll do some crazy crap and scare her off. We've been talking for three days now, and I like her. Emily hasn't given me any clues yet, but I want to see if she does at the end. She suggested dinner tomorrow night but I don't want to ruin my chances."

"Raj, if I may interject. What if you take those experimental medications that you used when my sister was in town?" Sheldon said.

The other man shrugged. "Those things have side effects, remember? But it wouldn't hurt to use them."

He gave her a nod before his eyes shot up. "I've got an idea! Can you guys come to dinner with us? You don't have to sit with us, but I want you guys to be near enough to oversee the date."

"I supposed that could work," Sheldon stated.

Raj smiled. "Great! If I do something wrong during the night, tell me. At the end, inform me of any mistakes I've done throughout the dinner. I have the tendency to not realize what I have done until a person tells me."

Penny looked over to Sheldon, who gave a silent agreement to the plan. "Okay, Raj. We'll be there."

Raj beamed even more before pulling Penny into a hug. "Thank you so much!"

Sheldon, who was observing all of this from the couch, immediately walked over to the two of them. "That's enough for both of you. Can we please start our first match of Mystic Warlords of Ka'a? I'm anticipating in defeating you two single-handedly."

They pulled away from their hug and the three moved back to the couch. As Raj shuffled the cards, he couldn't help but watch as Sheldon shifted closer next to Penny and looking down on her with what he thought was an adoring face. Penny caught Sheldon's gaze, and they both blushed intensely before Raj began handing out the playing cards.

Penny stared at her own reflection. She had just finished curling her blonde hair before placing a red flower barrette that she made herself, calling it Penny Blossoms. Twirling her body around, she loved the new dress she purchased a month ago but never had the chance to wear it to somewhere formal. The dress was red, similar to the color of a rose. It was strapless and fit her curves perfectly. The ends of the dress were flailed and reached down to right above her knees. Penny decided that the dress would look good with a pair of black Dolce Vita Suede Balla Sandals she received on her birthday last year.

With a dash of her favorite lip gloss and one final look of herself in the mirror, Penny grabbed her matching handbag before walking out of her apartment and headed downstairs to the lobby. She knew she did a good job when she caught the quick glances of the men passing by her in the halls.

She climbed into her car and proceeded to drive to Sheldon's apartment. Raj reserved a table close to his and Emily's, and hoped that everything goes well tonight. Penny turned her car down Los Robles Avenue and soon was parked in front of the building. She messaged Sheldon that she's waiting for him outside and after a short while, he came out of the apartment wearing his windbreaker. Penny noticed he wasn't wearing his usual plaid pants, and wondered if he opted for a suit for dinner.

"Good evening, Penny. You look very nice for tonight," Sheldon complimented, but wished he had said a different one.

Penny reached out for his hand and patted it softly. "That's really sweet of you. Thank you. What about you? What are you wearing?"

"Mother suggested that I wear suit for the evening. She informed me that showing up in my usual clothing at the restaurant we are currently heading to is not what she considers to be appropriate. I had to purchase a suit in such short notice."

"I bet you look nice in it though."

Sheldon's cheeks blushed. "Will this be considered as a date?"

Penny turned her head to the right. "No, sweetie. We're just two friends eating out at a fancy restaurant. Not a date."

"Oh, alright. It's not a date," Sheldon slightly frowned.

Once they reached the parking lot, Sheldon instantly got out of the car and rushed to the driver's side. He slowly opened Penny's door, in which she turned to him and smiled. "What a gentleman. Thank you, Sheldon." He fought the urge to offer his arm to Penny, afraid that she might think that he thinks it's a date. They entered inside and were directed to the table Raj reserved for them. Sheldon pulled the chair out for Penny, and she thanked him again.

Penny reached for the wine bottle on the table, but Sheldon had taken it before she could hold it. She shot him a confused look and Sheldon shook his head. "Not tonight, Penny. Since I cannot drive, you have to when we leave. Drinking and driving is against the law. I certainly do not want the both of us to end up in a fiery car crash."

She chuckled. "Sweetie, I'm just going to have one glass not chug the whole bottle."

"Half a glass." Sheldon said as a counter-offer.

"If it makes you feel any better, I won't have a drink tonight," Penny replied and Sheldon seemed content with her response. "Anyways, what's new in your life?"

Sheldon thought for a moment. "I was recently told that I need to attend a fundraiser at the university in a matter of weeks. For some reason, I'm not looking forward to it."

"That sounds fun though. It's basically like a party and you get to dress up. I like dressing up."

"Maybe you can attend the function with me," Sheldon hesitantly said. "If you're interested."

Penny nodded. "I would love to attend the fundraiser with you."

A few minutes later, Raj and Emily appeared, sitting to the table directly adjacent towards theirs. Penny told Sheldon to listen and remember every word that comes out of Raj's mouth. Before he entered the restaurant, Raj took the experimental drug and fortunately, he didn't suffer from the terrible side effects. But as the night proceeded, Penny knew that it was unnecessary. He was doing great and Emily appeared to be enjoying the outing with him. Penny overheard Emily asking if Raj was with anyone at the moment, to which he said no.

"I like you, Raj. You're so sweet and funny and just genuine. I really hope we can get closer," Emily said and Raj couldn't help but grin.

"Same here," Raj responded.

Penny knew the two had hit it off pretty well. They seemed so comfortable with each other and look like a cute couple. Both had an interest in romantic novels and much more.

As she thought all of this, Penny didn't realize that the man sitting across from her was looking at her the whole time.

Sheldon couldn't take his eyes off Penny, and he was afraid that she'll catch him. He knew that she was an attractive woman, and tonight was no exception. He was glad that a woman like Penny was friends with him. Sheldon remembered the awful names he was called by the bullies, and how he was told he would never get a girl. He proved them wrong though.

He has Penny.

"Here we are, 2311 North Los Robles Ave."

Sheldon unbuckled his seat belt but didn't leave the car yet. He stared at his hands resting on his lap as silence filled the air. In his head, he tried to come up with something to say. He gulped, and looked at Penny. "Our first date was very memorable."

"Sweetie, it wasn't a date," Penny reminded him, but Sheldon refused to accept the fact.

"If it was, did you enjoy it?" Sheldon hesitantly asked.

They locked eyes for a moment, blue ones staring into green. Sheldon reluctantly reached out to grab her hands and placed them into his. He hoped that her answer was what he wanted to hear. He listened to their steady breaths as he slowly squeezed Penny's soft hands. Both hadn't broken their gaze of one another. He felt his heat beat faster when Penny licked her lips. The wait was agonizingly slow, but the quiet exchange of looks was thrilling.

Penny opened her mouth to speak, and Sheldon's eyes lit up once she said that one word.

"Yes."

Penny didn't dare to repeat to him about how she has not interest in being with someone. She would have been lying if she did.

Peaceful and serene. It felt right.

The way his blue eyes were locked on hers sent a chill down her spine. It was as if she had been awoken from a deep sleep. His light grip of her hands was enough to make her body ache for more. The moment was intense and a bit passionate.

Maybe there is something lying between the two. Maybe this was her chance to begin a brand new chapter in her life. She released the deep breath she had in her and gently brought her hand up to Sheldon's face. As her palm touched his cheek, she could feel him tremble slightly. Penny pushed her first idea she had in mind, which was kiss him right there. She needed more time to think and see if this was a good idea. She leaned towards him and pressed her lips on the side of his face.

When she pulled back, Sheldon's eyes were still following her every movement. A shift in their friendship has been made, and there was no turning back now.

"Soon, Sheldon," Penny spoke in which Sheldon nodded.

"I'll be waiting," he promised.

She smiled, and oh, how that smile caused the figurative butterflies in his stomach to flutter around. Sheldon released his hold on her other hand before saying his goodbye. Penny watched him exit the car and walk up to the front door of the apartment building. He unlocked the door, but before stepping inside, he waved at the blonde one last time, and was soon gone from her sight.

Penny froze. She didn't bother to ignite the engine of her car until she was quite composed of herself.

Sheldon was an honest man, and every time they spent with each other were ones that she would cherish for life. She turned on the radio, and the song Falling In Love At A Coffee Shop started to play.

I think that possibly, maybe I'm falling for you
Yes there's a chance that I've fallen quite hard over you.
I've seen the paths that your eyes wander down
I want to come too

I think that possibly, maybe I'm falling for you

No one understands me quite like you do
Through all of the shadowy corners of me

She quietly sang to herself until the song ended.

He said he'll wait. Sheldon promised, and from what she knows about him, he never breaks promises.

A/N:

Well, here starts the romance portion of the story. I couldn't have them just fall in love all of a sudden.

Yeah, I got a lot of reviews saying what Penny did was crappy the chapter prior and I understand where you're all getting that. I wanted her to be a character that doesn't need to be in a relationship every minute. She only sees Sheldon as a friend and doesn't want to further it anymore. I'm sorry I upset you and I'm not the most amazing writer here. I tend to leave things out or make the readers misunderstand. This chapter was a huge apology and hopefully to get things right.

I'm not gonna update for a while. Need to clear things in my head.