:Saying Goodbye:
Leonard took a deep breath and stepped up to the podium. This was the very last place he wanted to be. He looked out over the sea of faces and tried to control his emotions. Raj was softly crying. Howard was shaking with the effort to remain calm. The Cooper family was pale and solemn. The Queen family looked shell-shocked.
He looked down at the wedding photo on the table in front of him. Penny and Sheldon, arms wrapped tight around each other. Seven long years they had to wait for this day. Seven long years of endless pain, sorrow and disappointment.
He cleared his throat nervously and looked at the papers in front of him.
"Seven years ago, we lost two of the most important people in our lives. I will never forget how excited they were to be going on their honeymoon. A romantic cruise, just the two of them. Four days later they disappeared at sea. Every day since then, I have wished and hoped that they would walk through the apartment door and back into our lives. Sheldon, Penny, we miss you both so much. We love you. You left us far too soon. If there is an afterlife, I hope you are together in it. You deserve an eternity together at the very least."
Leonard stepped down and motioned for Mrs. Cooper. The next hour was filled with testimonials as everyone shared their favorite stories and memories of Sheldon, Penny, or both.
Once the ceremony was over, Leonard, Howard and Raj stood in the vestibule with Mr. and Mrs. Queen and Mrs. Cooper as they thanked everyone for coming to the service. Once the last person left, Leonard went back inside to retrieve the photo and Memorial urn. He froze when he got close to the table.
Propped up in front of the urn was a photo. He stared at it as tears threatened to form. Slowly he looked around the empty room. He had never given much credence to the idea of ghosts before. But how else could he explain the presence of a photo that he knew for a fact Penny had taken with her on their cruise?
He reached out and picked it up gently, closing his eyes as he remembered the day it was taken. Sheldon and Penny had announced their wedding. After two years of dating, they were finally tying the knot. Sheldon had been sick with nerves for two weeks before asking her. Howard had insisted on taking them out to dinner. He remembered that Raj had convinced a waiter to take the photo. Howard and Raj on the left, him on the right, and Penny and Sheldon in the middle, kissing tenderly.
Leonard slipped the photo into his jacket pocket and looked at the wedding photo again. "Thank you," he whispered. "I miss you guys, too."
After re-reading Changes and getting it ready to post, I thought of this. Sorry for the sad story. Blame it on two weeks of rainy slush, no school for the kids and 9 straight days of work. Hard to feel fluffy with all the crazy going on right now.