A/N: Again, a big thank you to all those who read and reviewed. Here's chapter 5 of this story. I hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from The Big Bang Theory. I don't own any of the characters.

CHAPTER 5

Penny led the way into their room in the cabin, taking Leonard by the hand. As soon as they were in the room she let go of his hand and closed the door. Penny passed by Leonard and climbed into bed. He wasn't sure what to do. Penny gave him a smile. "Don't stand there like glued to the spot. Come in. I won't bite you."

Smiling shyly back at her, he took off his shoes and tossed them in a corner of the room. Then he doffed his pants and hoodie and put it down on the couch, which was actually supposed to be his sleeping place. All this was amusedly observed by Penny. She drew the blanket aside and patted the empty spot next to her with her hand. Still unsure and a bit tense he slowly walked towards the bed. When he arrived at the edge of the bed he stood still.

"You almost did it, sweetie," Penny encouraged him. "One more step."

Leonard took a deep breath and got in bed. Smiling at each other they sat in bed next to each other. Penny put her hands around his neck and draw him closer to her. Their faces slowly came closer till their lips touched. They tenderly started to kiss. There was an unspoken mutual agreement to not go further than this. Since their frienship was only just a few days old, either of them took the view that sleeping with each other would have been too soon at this point. But kissing and cuddling on the other hand was something that both weren't able to resist, neither in this early stage of their friendship. One could say there where already beyond the point of being just friends.

A loud noise coming from the living room unceremoniously tore them out of their activity. "Dammit," Penny huffed. They both got out of bed to look what was going on. The sight which awaited them was hilarous. Howard and Raj were entangled like a ball of wool and rolled over the floor insulting each other. They obviously had a fight, but it looked like a cat fight. Leonard and Penny started to laugh hysterically, which prompted the two squabblers to stop their quarrel at once. "What's going on here?" Leonard asked slightly out of breath, because of the laughing. Howard and Raj moved apart, with Raj quickly taking a swig of beer from a bottle that still stood on the coffee table.

Raj angrily looked at Howard. "This jerk has somehow managed to get the phone numbers of the girls who drove us around the village yesterday. And now he keeps them from me. One of these numbers is the number of the future Mrs. Koothrappali. I have a right to know it."

Howard scoffed. "I'm doing you a favor. You can't speak to women, without alcohol. How do you want to keep up a marriage?"

"You let me worry about that, dude," Raj shot back. "Now give me the numbers."

Howard folded his arms. "Forget it. As I said before, I call dibs on both ladies."

Leonard and Penny looked at each other with a confused look on their faces. Shaking their heads they went back to their room. Penny closed the door and linked her arms behind Leonard's neck. "Where did we leave off?" she asked with a bright smile.

"I think we were about to have a little fun with kissing and cuddling." Leonard said cheerfully, trying to tickle her. Giggling, Penny hopped back into bed. Leonard followed immediately and they started to kiss again.

Suddenly the door was torn open and Howard stormed in, which caused a startled Penny to let out a heartbreaking squeal.

Her squeal let Howard wince. "Oops! Sorry! Am I interrupting?" he asked, knowing of course he did something that was not okay.

"Howard, what the hell!?" Leonard yelled.

Penny was furious. "You can't come in here without knocking."

Howard tried to sound apologetically. "I'm really sorry, where are my manners?"

"What do you want?" Leonard asked irritated. Anger clearly visible on his face.

"Umm, yeah...Leonard, we need you to act as intermediary," Howard replied.

"Are you kidding me? I don't want to be involved in your silly Kindergarten squabbling."

"I told you," Howard shouted through the open door, obviously directed at Raj. "By the way, what are you two doing here? Can I participate? Maybe I can win you two over to a nice threesome?"

"Get out!" Penny screamed.

Howard winced again and raised his hands in an appeasing manner. "Wow! Relax!" He turned on his heel and left the room, closing the door.

"Boy, this was a real mood killer," Leonard said contritely. "I think we call it a night. We have to get up quite early tomorrow. New York is waiting."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Penny sighingly agreed, disappointment clearly written in the face.

"We still have some nights ahead of us," Leonard winked and leapt out of the bed to go to the bathroom. When he returned after a few minutes, Penny had already fallen asleep. He sighed and went to sleep on the couch, since he wasn't sure if it was okay to climb in bed with her without invitation so to say.

Leonard and Penny were raised out of their sleep by the alarm of Leonard's phone at 7 o'clock in the morning. It was Monday, October the first. The last week of their road trip had begun. Penny slowly openend her eyes and saw the place next to her was empty. Looking at the couch, she saw Leonard getting up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Good morning, Penny."

"Good morning, Leonard. Why did you sleep on the couch?"

"Umm...I wasn't sure, if it would have been okay to climb in bed with you, without your invitation."

Penny chuckled. "Oh, sweetie. Of course it would have been okay."

Leonard blushed. "Oh, I see. Umm, okay. Maybe tonight in New York."

Penny nodded and smiled at him. "Yeah, maybe tonight."

A few minutes later Leonard and Penny trudged into the kitchen, where Howard and Raj already prepared breakfast. Seeing Leonard and Penny's tired faces, Howard couldn't resist to greet them in his own special way. "Good morning! You two partied very hard, eh?"

Penny glared at him. "Shut up!"

"I'm sorry. I guess my intrusion was a mood killer for your love games." Howard apologized half-heartedly and with a sarcastic overtone.

"Shut up," Leonard huffed, pouring himself a cup of coffee.

After finishing breakfast they packed their things and checked out. At nine o'clock they were on their way to New York City. Howard drove the first stage from Seneca Lake to Scranton, Pennsylvania. There Raj took over the wheel. After their silly fight over telephone numbers Howard and Raj got along with each other again. As it turned out, the numbers the girls gave them were wrong anyway. Leonard and Penny sat on the back seat and slept most of the time.

Around three o'clock in the afternoon, they crossed the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, a double-decked suspension bridge that connected the New York City boroughs of Staten Island and Brooklyn. A few days before they had found a reasonably priced hotel via the internet in the central part of Brooklyn and had reserved two rooms online. They arrived at the hotel at half past three. After checking in the three men and Penny moved into their rooms. Like in Chicago and Cleveland, Penny had her own room.

Once they all had settled down and refreshed themselves, they headed out to explore the surroundings of their hotel. There was a nice park just across the street from the hotel. In the surrounding streets they found an array of restaurants, coffee shops, diners and small, cozy stores, that sold literally everything from used books, over exotic spices to Voodoo requisites. There was also a comic book store, which immediately caught the attention of Leonard, Howard and Raj. And if Penny wouldn't have urged them to move along, they would have spent the rest of the day there. In terms of alone time for Leonard and Penny it was just like on the second day in Cleveland and the day they drove to Seneca Lake. There wasn't any. And in the evening of their first day in New York Howard and Raj made sure that Leonard and Penny were watching TV with them, like on the following four evenings.

On Tuesday, their second day, they all went together to see the Statue of Liberty and made a boat tour on the Upper New York Bay and the East River, where they marveled at the amazing skyline of Manhattan. Like in Chicago Penny took loads of pictures, including a lot of selfies with Leonard. Howard and Raj squandered their opportunity to be in a selfie, when they once again made an inappropriate comment about her and Leonard. The last tour of the day brought them to Manhattan's famous Chinatown, a lively neighborhood, full of good values in restaurants and food shopping. They had a delicious dinner in a properly styled chinese restaurant, before they returned to their hotel in Brooklyn. On their way to their rooms Penny insisted on giving Leonard a quick peck on his lips in an unobserved moment, much to his delight. The day faded out with watching TV in the guy's hotel room.

On the third day in New York, a Wednesday, they visited another icon of New York City, the Brooklyn Bridge, one of the oldest hybrid cable-stayed/suspension bridges in the United States. They crossed the bridge via the pedestrian walkway, almost causing an accident, when Howard tripped and nearly was hit by a cyclist. After having lunch at a small restaurant they strolled along the famous stretch of Broadway in Midtown Manhattan near Times Square, where the street crossed Seventh Avenue. Penny would have loved to see a musical or a stage play in one of the many theatres, but due to limitations of her budget it wasn't possible. The afternoon was spent in Central Park. Standing on a rock on the northeastern shore of the pond called 'The Lake', savoring the spectacular sight of the buildings on Central Park West, a section of Eighth Avenue, Penny felt a sudden fit of melancholia, when she realized this trip would be over by the end of the week. Leonard tore her out of this thoughs, when he touched her shoulder indicating they wanted to move along. After having a meal in a fastfood restaurant near Times Square, they headed back to their Brooklyn hotel, where they ended the day with the same activities as on the two days before.

On Thursday, a visit of the world-renowned Bronx Zoo, the largest metropolitan zoo in the United States and one of the largest in the world was one of the main points of their agenda. In the afternoon they visited the New York Botanical Garden, which was located north of the Bronx Zoo. The garden's verdant landscape supporting over one million living plants in extensive collections invited them to stroll around. Howard and Raj made some attempts to flirt with girls, but as soon as Howard said something the girls went on the run. And Raj being not able to speak to women without alcohol wasn't helpful either. Leonard and Penny watched this amusedly. A dinner in a small restaurant and another TV session in the guy's room ended day four of their stay in New York City.

Friday started with a breakfast in their hotel, like on the days before. Since breakfast was included in the price, Howard and Raj loaded tons of food on their plates. It was a wonder they didn't burst. They especially fell for the chocolate filled pastries. At one point Raj had to choke, because he ate too fast. People turned their heads around, causing Leonard and Penny to blush from embarrassment. But the peak of embarrassment was only reached, when Raj began to throw black grapes at Howard, which he tried to catch with his mouth. Some of the grapes landed on the floor, and one on an adjacent table. Luckily it wasn't occupied. Leonard and Penny were glad, when their breakfast was finished. At eleven o'clock they headed out to visit the Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, known for the New York State Pavilion and the Unisphere. Afterwards they drove to Forest Hills Gardens, a part of the Queens neighborhood of Forest Hills, with its nice detached single-family homes. After having a late afternoon meal and a walk in Queens' Forest Park, they ended the day with a walk on the beach of the Rockaway Peninsula, the southernmost part of Queens.

Back in the hotel, Howard could persuade Penny to participate in a round of 'Mystic Warlords of Ka'a' after their every evening activity of watching TV.

Leonard could see, that Penny was already bored after a few minutes. "Do you want to play something else?"

"Umm...no, no, it's okay. But I have a question."

"Warlord beats troll, troll beats elf, elf beats water sprite, and basically everything beats enchanted bunny," Leonard explained.

"Unless you have the carrot power," Howard added.

"Okay, I've got another question. You guys can really play this for hours?"

"Sure, there are even tournaments," Leonard answered matter-of-factly.

"Really?" Penny asked with an astonished expression on her face.

"Yep!" Raj said, taking a sip of beer.

Penny yawned. "Okay guys, whatever! I'm really sorry, but I have to quit. I'm tired." Penny got up from the bed she was sitting on, said 'good night' and left the room.

"Well, that's obviously not her game," Leonard shrugged.

"Speaking of games. Our trip is almost over. Do you think you can interest her in another round of the good old mating game?" Howard asked unambiguously.

"Mating game?" Leonard replied with a puzzled face.

"You know..."

"Yes, Howard. I know."

"Well?"

"I'm not talking about my sex life with you."

"Too bad."

Leonard shook his head and they continued to play. It was around midnight, when the day for the three men was over too.

Much to Leonard and Penny's delight, they managed to separate from Howard and Raj on Saturday. When Penny suggested to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Howard and Raj showed no interest. Of course Leonard agreed to join Penny at once, not just because it was another chance to spend time alone with her, but also because he was genuinely interested in visiting the museum, after the great experiences in the Art Institute of Chicago and the Cleveland Museum of Art. As early as possible Leonard and Penny headed out to avoid a long wait in the lines at the entrance of the museum's main building at Manhattan's Fifth Avenue. Much to their surprise they could enter the largest art museum in the United States, and one of the most visited art museums in the world, after only ten minutes of waiting. They almost spent the whole day inside the museum. The number of art objects was amazing. There were works of art from classical antiquity and ancient Egypt, paintings and sculptures from nearly all the European masters, and an extensive collection of American and modern art. In addition to it you could see African, Asian, Oceanian, Byzantine, and Islamic art plus collections of musical instruments, costumes and accessories, and antique weapons and armor from around the world.

Leonard and Penny were particularly impressed by the Robert Lehman Collection with its great number of paintings of the Italian Renaissance, including masterpieces by Botticelli and Domenico Veneziano. The collection also featured works by a significant number of Spanish painters, like El Greco and Goya. Also very impressive was Lehman's collection of drawings by the Old Masters, featuring works by Rembrandt and Dürer.

Penny was fascinated by El Greco's late 16th century painting "View of Toledo". She looked at Leonard who stood next to her. "It's so great to see this painting in real. You know, we had an extensive discussion about this painting in one of my art courses in college. Do you see the distinct color contrast between the dark and somber skies above and the glowing green hills below?" she asked him. Leonard nodded and Penny continued to explain. "Although El Greco was influenced by the Mannerist style of the 16th century, his handling of color and form seems to anticipate the expressionist style that only arose at the beginning of the 20th century."

"Wow, you have a real great knowledge of all this masterpieces." Leonard was impressed. "You should become an art historian."

Penny smiled and they continued to walk through the halls and corridors of the museum.

When they left the museum late in the afternoon, Leonard had the idea to visit one of the observation decks of the Empire State Building, where they could relish an impressive view of the city. Penny agreed immediately with an enthusastic nod. A few minutes later they were sitting in a cab, that drove them the few miles down Fifth Avenue to the Empire State Building. They bought a ticket and one of the elevators brought them to the observation deck on the 86th floor. They were both almost speechless, when they stepped out to the observation deck.

Penny was stunned. "Wow! What a sight!"

"Yeah, it's spectacular," Leonard agreed, equally stunned as Penny.

For a few minutes they stood next to each other in comfortable silence, looking south over the city below them. It was a clear day, and dusk was beginning to set in. The setting sun over the western horizon, painted the cloudless sky in breathtaking colors from deep blue over orange to glowing red. The buildings of the city were bathed in a golden light.

"I can't believe, I'm standing here. Just because of you, Leonard. I owe you so much." Tears began to fill her eyes. "I'm so happy to be here, with you, looking over the city and savoring the sight of the setting sun. But it's also our last evening together. By this time tomorrow, you'll be back in California, and I'm back in my miserable life in Nebraska." A single tear rolled down Penny's cheek.

Leonard wiped the tear away with his thumb and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. He felt tears welling up in his eyes himself. The whole time they had suppressed the fact that their ways would part on Sunday. "Please don't cry, Penny. Or I have to cry too. We will stay in contact. We can call each other, we can write emails, we can video chat over the internet. I can visit you and you can visit me."

"Yes, we can do that. Please promise me to stay in contact with me, please." Penny looked at Leonard with pleading eyes.

"Of course Penny, I promise." Leonard tried to cheer her up. "Come on, let's not think of that now. Let's have a nice evening. Just you and me. I treat you to a dinner. What do you say?"

Penny nodded with teary eyes, but already smiling again.

They stayed on the observation deck for a further fifteen minutes, leaning against each other, watching the sun go down and not speaking all too much, while the millions of lights of the city began to shine. Penny had rested her head on Leonard's shoulder, both holding on to each other with a hand around the other's waist.

When they left the Empire State Building and stood at Fifth Avenue, they hailed a cab who brought them back to their hotel in Brooklyn. Seeing that their rental car wasn't on the parking next to the hotel, they knew that Howard and Raj were still on the move. They went to their respective rooms to refresh and get new clothes. After meeting again in the hotel lobby they went to a nearby restaurant to have dinner. It was a wonderful evening with a delicious meal and lots of talking and laughing. Every time they shared a brief look or gazed at each other for a moment, they blushed and quickly looked away with a shy smile on their faces. It was amazing how Penny felt those butterflies in her stomach welling up each time he looked at her, while at the same time Leonard had an unbelievably strong feeling of affection when he met her gorgeous green eyes and she smiled at him. An affection Penny felt as well for quite some time now. The sadness which overcame both on the observation deck of the Empire State Building was forgotten for the time being. When they finished their meal, Leonard paid for it, as promised.

Linking her arm with Leonard's they walked back to their hotel, barely speaking a word, in a peaceful, but also melancholic atmosphere. The nice dinner had helped to forget what lay ahead of them. A painful goodbye. And it approached inevitably. Once they arrived in their hotel they walked up to their rooms, Penny's arm still liked with Leonard's.

Standing in front of Penny's door, she bit her lip and looked at Leonard. "It was a wonderful evening. Thank you, Leonard."

"I'm glad you liked it," he smiled.

Penny took the key out of her purse and opened her door. Looking back at Leonard, when she put her key back into her purse, their eyes met and they looked at each other like never before. Both of their eyes were full of desire.

There was this feeling of melancholy in the air, but there was also something else in the air that had built up during the evening. An intense sexual tension. They both felt it, but in this moment no one knew how to handle it. Neither of them wanted this night to end. It was Leonard who spoke again. "Umm...Penny..."

Penny didn't let Leonard finish his sentence. She had made a decision. "Don't say anything, Leonard. Let's have this night."

She took his hand and they both entered Penny's room.

As soon as Leonard and Penny were in her hotel room, they started to kiss. Soft and tender, with Penny's hands linked behind his neck and Leonard's arms wrapped around her waist. Leonard broke the kiss after a few seconds, because he had to make sure, they both wanted the same. He looked deeply into Penny's eyes, and what he saw in them was verily the same he felt in this moment. After eyes full of desire in the hotel corridor, it was undoubtedly arousal now that filled her eyes. Those mesmerizing, sparkling green eyes, which put a spell on him when his eyes met hers for the first time in that restaurant in Omaha. But now her eyes were almost black, because of her dilated pupils. A slow nod by Penny signalled him she wanted the same like him. It was like a plea at Leonard to continue. Within seconds after Penny's wordless sign his lips started to caress her neck below the ear, which immediately send blissful shivers through her body and generated a deep moan. At the same time this familiar feeling of those million flattering butterflies in her stomach set in again. Paired with those blissful shivers it resulted in a feeling of indescribable pleasure. Leonard's lips moved to her mouth, which she opened slightly to allow his tongue to enter. Their kissing now became wild and impetuous. Leonard's hands that rested on Penny's waist until now, started to slide up and down the side of her upper body, until they found a way under her top and cupped her breasts. Wandering with his lips back to her neck, Penny let out moans of pleasure. "Oh, Leonard!"

For the next few minutes they continued to caress each other's body, letting their arousal to go sky high. After another blissful shiver, caused by Leonard's kissing of her neck, Penny took off her top and threw it on the floor. A few moments later all other clothes she was wearing were spread on the floor. She hopped into bed and laid herself on the blanket. "Would you care to join me?" she said in a seductive tone. Leonard was spellbound by the stunningly beautiful girl in front of him. It took him a few seconds to collect his thoughts again. Then he got rid of his clothes and climbed in bed with her.

Smiling, and looking deeply into Leonard's eyes, Penny reached out her hand and touched his cheek. "Please make love to me."

It was long after midnight, when their love making full of passion and devotion ended. Leonard held Penny in a tender embrace and she gently drew patterns on his arm with her finger.

What Penny felt in this moment was different than anything she ever felt before with anyone else. And the same was true for Leonard. From the day they met in Omaha their feelings for each other became stronger and stronger with every day.

But now there was also a feeling this could be the first and the last time they would share this wonderful experience they had tonight. Sadness overcame Penny and she softly started to cry. Leonard gently stroke her head to comfort her. He knew why she was crying and he felt like crying too.

The last day of their road trip had broken. In a few hours Leonard would fly back to California and Penny would return to Omaha.

To be continued...