Unexpectedly, I managed to make my final edits last night, so I am posting this chapter now, before I leave for our family Christmas celebration. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! If you do, then maybe take it as an early Christmas present :-)

I hope you all stay safe, wherever you are, especially those who are affected by the snow storms I read about today!

I can't believe, a month ago
I was alone, I didn't know you
I hadn't seen you or heard your name
And even now, I'm so amazed
It's like a dream
It's like a rainbow
It's like the rain
And some things are the way they are
And words just can't explain

As It Is In Heaven
Chapter 9 – "Never Saw Blue Like That"

She opened the door for him to follow her, then went straight to the fridge to get the promised beverage.

"Let's go to the living room, the couch's more comfy.", she said with a slight slurring in her voice, just when he wanted to sit down at the kitchen table like he usually did.

"Alright.", he shrugged.

The couch really was a lot more comfortable, and he could feel the toll this day had taken on him, as he sat back with a deep sigh.

"Thank you.", he smiled at her as she handed him a glass.

"You're welcome.", she smiled back.

He let his eyes wander around the room. For the first time consciously, since he had always been occupied with his sheet music when he was here.

Just like in the kitchen, there were so many reminders of meemaw.

His heart still constricted painfully, every time he thought about her, but the sheer agony started to dissipate a little.

Unexpectedly, knowing he was sharing part of her life now helped. Working with the choir, she used to be a member of, talking to her former friends, hanging out at her house, it all helped with his grief and gave him a bit of closure.

"Thank you, Sheldon. For helping today. I know it was more than what you agreed on. But I think this was the best choir practice I've ever attended."

He looked at her in confusion. She had already thanked him. There was no reason to do it again.

"It's alright.", he just said.

They sat next to each other in silence for a while, as he drank the beverage that he had loved all through his childhood.

The events of the evening were still playing in his mind.

He had really enjoyed himself. At a bar. Which was crazy enough as it was.

If only meemaw could have seen him. She would have loved this.

The only thing she would not have loved was the way Missy had rushed home.

He had put the thought aside for the remainder of the evening, because he had been focused on the woman next to him.

But it had seemed, the whole choir had known something. Something about Robbie and Missy.

"What's troubling you, cowboy?", Amy asked him, apparently trying to sound Texan.

He chuckled, as he watched her. She was swaying slightly next to him.

But the way she looked at him, he felt, she really wanted to know. She cared.

"It's just… Missy. Again.", he confessed. "I'm sorry. I know you said it was none of your business. I just keep wondering. It seems to be an open secret in the choir, the way he treats her."

"Ah.", she nodded. "And you wonder why no one's doing anything about it."

"Exactly.", he agreed. "He's… hurting her. Maybe her children too, I don't know."

"Sheldon…", Amy sighed. "Yes, people are suspecting that he's hurting her. They all saw how Missy changed."

"Then why?", he asked again. "How can they just let it happen?"

"Well, first of all, they don't have evidence. They haven't seen the…"

She stopped herself.

His eyes widened. "Bruises? You've seen them too?"

"I'm sorry.", Amy said. "I shouldn't have said…"

"No!", he protested. "No, you should have absolutely said that. Tell me, Amy. Please."

"She always covers them up.", she whispered. "But Connie and I saw them sometimes. She was less careful, when she was over here."

It felt like a punch in the gut. So, the bruises were a frequent occurrence.

"Do you think, we should call the police?", he asked. He really wanted to.

"Connie did that once.", Amy said, looking at her feet. "It did not end well. Sheldon, Robbie has strong ties to the community. And friends in a few very important places. When he heard about it, he stopped Missy from spending any time with Connie or me outside of the choir. And as long as Missy won't come forward, nothing's going to happen."

"What can I do?", he whispered. "How do I make this stop? How do I get Missy away from him?"

"Oh, I know.", she suddenly shouted out of nowhere and jumped up. "I have a contact who works with monkeys. We could train one of them to shoot a poison dart. No jury would convict us 'cause people love monkeys."

He blinked. Well, that was the kind of crazy idea he would expect from a High School science teacher.

But based on their conversations earlier that evening, she must be capable of a better plan, so he looked at her sternly.

"I understand the alcohol has stirred up whatever it is that makes girls go wild, but I really need to talk to smart Amy now."

"Alright.", Amy conceded and shook her head as she sat back down, as if she was trying to shake off the alcohol.

Then, she covered his hand with hers, which – for some reason – comforted him greatly.

"Sheldon, you won't like what I am about to say."

Without even thinking about it, he gripped her hand tightly.

"Still. Say it. Please."

Amy sighed deeply.

"The more you pressure Missy, the more she will pull away from you. But the good thing is, unlike the rest of your family, you are not looking away. So, what you can do is be a brother. Be there for her and get her to trust you. So, she knows you'll support her, should she leave Robbie."

He closed his eyes. She was right, that was not what he had wanted to hear.

"You really think that's all I can do? Shouldn't I do something more active?"

"You want a quicker solution.", she nodded in understanding. "You want Missy and her kids out of his house immediately. I get that. But Sheldon, it does not work like this. Maybe… you can keep trying to get your mother to listen to you. When I tried, she only got mad at me. But you are her son. She won't shut you out."

It still wasn't exactly what he had hoped to hear. But he guessed, she was right.

"Thank you for telling me, Amy.", he said softly. "About all of this. And for your advice. You've helped me. A lot."

"You're welcome."

He meant it. She was the first person to take him seriously here. She did not just brush him off. She listened to him. She was there for him.

Finally, he had someone in his life again who cared about him.

And not just someone. The more time he spent with her, he realized, there was a certain way he felt, whenever she was around.

She never told him he was too much. She never belittled him or called him weird or annoying. Never looked down on him. Never made him feel like less than he was.

And that after he had been so mean to her in the beginning. Somehow, she had understood him even then.

She always did. It was as if he had finally found a person who spoke his language.

"So, you've spent a lot of time with my family these past two years.", he said to break the silence. "I can't believe no one ever told me about you all this time."

She shrugged.

"Well, I am not that interesting."

"I beg to differ.", he blurted out and blushed as he realized what he had just said.

She stared at him for a second before her eyes shifted to their still joined hands.

"Well, if it helps, your folks told me about you all the time."

"They did?", he asked softly.

"Yeah. Especially Connie. Although, that led to a funny misunderstanding in the beginning."

"Tell me.", he demanded.

"Well…", she started and shook her head in amusement. "She was going on and on about her grandson after I moved in here. She always said how much I reminded her of him and how she wanted me to meet him. And then she took me to a family dinner at your house where I was introduced to Georgie. Imagine my confusion when I didn't have anything in common with him. Here I was thinking she was trying to set me up but then I realized there was another… uhm…", she blushed. "Never mind."

Set her up? With Georgie? Oh… His eyes widened as he realized what she was saying.

He took a big gulp of his Yoo-Hoo and sat the glass down on the coffee table.

He too looked at their still joined hands then. How come he did not feel the urge to pull away? Hadn't he always hated this kind of physical contact?

"You had plans to meet that guy tonight. Mark. But you didn't.", he stated then.

"Well, yes, I planned to. But I cancelled when we decided to go out with the rest of the choir."

"Oh.", he said trying to keep his voice stoic and uninterested. "Do you regret it? Would you have preferred to go on a date tonight?"

She grinned at him cheekily.

"Well, we went out for drinks, danced a little, had a great conversation. You took me home… I don't feel like I missed out."

He blinked at her. Was she implying what he thought she was?

His eyes widened, when he saw her gaze land on his lips.

"That brings me to our next order of business.", she mumbled then, before she shifted closer to him.

For a split second, he wondered if this was just a dream again.

If so, this would be the moment when he woke up. Without ever knowing how it would feel, having her lips on his.

'Oh, please, don't wake up.', he thought for a split second before he could berate himself for it. 'Please. Not this time. I need to know.'

But as she reached for his shoulders and pressed her lips firmly to his, he knew instantly that no, this was not a dream. Because there was no way, a dream would ever feel like this. This was real.

He tried to analyze how he felt in the short moment that it happened.

There was shock. Not so much at her kissing him, but more at the fact he wasn't disgusted by it. This had happened twice before in his life, a woman kissing him unprompted, and he had felt repulsed both times.

But this time, all he felt was a tingling in his spine and the urge to kiss her back. Which he did for a second before she pulled away.

"Fascinating.", he blurted out.

She made a weird face and put her hand on her mouth. Oh no…

"Amy?", he asked carefully. "Are you going to be sick?"

She held up her index finger, motioning him to wait a second.

"No. No, I thought so, but I guess I'm good now.", she finally mumbled.

They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity.

There were so many thoughts running wild in his head. And if he'd had more time to process things, maybe if she really had gotten sick, he would have talked himself out of this.

But right this moment, he needed to know. Was that thing he had felt before just a strange anomaly? Or could he replicate the results?

He needed more data.

So, he just acted. He grabbed her shoulder with one hand and pulled her close. Just as he heard a surprised yelp from her, he pressed his lips to hers again.

There it was again. Fascinating.

Again, they pulled apart and looked at each other in shock.

He was just contemplating if this could be the kind of experiment that had to be performed three times in order for the results to be accurate, but she made the decision for him and kissed him once more.

But this time, none of them pulled away.

Both her hands found their way to his face as she kissed him.

Tentatively at first. Their lips brushed against each other. Barely touching but still, the intensity of it made him almost forget how to breathe.

With the things he thought he knew about her, he would have expected her to be much more forward, but just like him, she was breathing shallowly as she kissed him almost timidly.

Sheldon tried to make sense of all the things he felt right in this moment. And that led him to realize something.

As shocking as it was, this wasn't bad. Actually, it felt… amazing.

He couldn't stop kissing her. He wanted – no needed – more.

With his free arm he encircled her back and pulled her upper body flush to his.

She gasped, and he took the chance to deepen the kiss.

It did not take long for her to reciprocate just as eagerly as he felt.

Her lips, oh, they felt so soft as they were moving with his. They tasted of cranberry juice and some kind of alcohol, but that last thing didn't even bother him.

He was too distracted anyway, especially as he felt her nibbling on his lower lip, which seemed to send jolts of electricity directly into his spine.

For a second, he wondered if he was doing this right. But he didn't to worry long. They were just as in sync as their bodies had been before when they had been dancing.

Only once, they pulled apart when they had to come up for breath, only to find each other again immediately.

Their lips seemed to be glued together by some sort of magnetic force, something he never knew was possible.

There was nothing shy about their kisses anymore. Nothing timid or insecure. No. His heart was hammering away as with every minute, they grew more self-assured and passionate.

One of her small hands was still grasping his cheek, the other on his shoulder, clasping and unclasping almost rhythmically while his own hands were roaming her back, feeling the softness of her cardigan under his fingers.

The feeling in the pit of his stomach grew stronger and spread out in his whole body.

He felt more alive than he had ever had.

This whole night, it felt like the answer to a question he had never even dared to ask.

At the same time, he could feel more questions welling up in his mind. Hopeful questions. But also, some that worried him.

Like… where was this leading to? What were they doing? This was crazy.

But he pushed it aside. There would be time to analyse this later on. In this moment he just wanted to dwell in the wonder that was this woman.

Finally, she pulled away from him again.

"I'm… I… uhm…", she stuttered as she stared at him.

And then she burped. Not loud and not in an obscene way, but it was enough to finally disrupt whatever had been going on just now.

She covered her mouth, looking a little embarrassed and he was shocked at how adorable she was to him.

What. A. Crazy. Night.

"Are you alright?", he asked, as he saw her blink rapidly.

"I.. Yes.", she whispered. "Just… a little dizzy."

He felt dizzy too. But probably for different reasons.

She was still drunk after all and for a moment, he felt guilty. There surely must be some unwritten rules about kissing a woman while she was inebriated.

They should stop this now. Whatever this was. He needed to stop it. For her protection just as much as for his sanity.

"Well… I guess I should be going now.", he whispered back. "It's late and you should probably get some sleep."

She nodded in agreement and got up.

However, when he saw her standing there in his meemaw's living room, on unsteady legs, shaking slightly, he reconsidered.

"Come on, I'll help you.", he offered and extended his arm again, but when she just stared at him blankly, he lifted her up, one arm under her legs while supporting her upper back with the other one.

He tried not to think about the fact that this was usually how a groom was carrying his bride on their wedding night.

Because this had nothing to do with the kisses they had just shared. This was simply a friend helping another friend who was too drunk to walk.

She slung her arms around his neck and nuzzled into his chest and mumbled something he couldn't quite understand.

It felt strange, her hot breath on his shirt. Strange, but also stimulating.

He walked into her bedroom and sat her down on her bed then.

"Will you be okay, sleeping in your day clothes?", he asked her.

To his relief, she nodded. He couldn't have handled helping her change her clothes.

So, he helped her get into bed and covered her with her blanket.

"Thank you, Sheldon. Or should I say, Superman?", she mumbled then.

Superman?

She pointed at his shirt before tracing the logo with her finger.

"That's flattering.", he chuckled. "But I am not Superman. If anything, I am Batman."

"No. You are not a dark knight.", she disagreed. "There's nothing dark about you. You are Superman. My Superman. You are amazing, Sheldon. Even better than I imagined you to be."

"You… you imagined me?", he asked softly. "Before you knew me?"

"All the time. But shhh… that's a secret.", she whispered conspiratorially. "Don't tell Sheldon. It's embarrassing."

"But I am Sheldon.", he insisted. Who did she think was taking her to bed right now? Should he feel offended?

"Oh…", she giggled. "In that case… Will you kiss me good-night, Sheldon?"

He shouldn't. She was drunk and he still didn't know what to make of the events of the evening.

"Please?", she begged him.

He really couldn't say no to her, so he bent down and kissed her lips. Just a short peck. But she didn't let go of him immediately. Instead, she held his face close to hers.

"Better. So, so much better than I imagined.", she whispered.

He couldn't help but feel flattered.

"That's good to hear."

She cupped his cheek and caressed him with her fingers, biting her lips.

"I'm just scared you might break my heart again.", she sighed then before she closed her eyes.

"Again?", he managed to ask, but she was already asleep.

He shook his head.

What did she mean by that? He had only met her two weeks ago. And he certainly had never broken a woman's heart.

She was probably talking about someone else. Maybe she had gotten her heart broken by a man recently and was afraid he could do the same to her.

A thought that was completely foreign to him.

He was many things. But certainly not a heartbreaker.

He let his eyes roam around the room then. He was no stranger to this room, having stayed in here several times in the past. The furniture was still mostly the same, but there were fresh flowers on the nightstand.

His gaze fell on a big, open book on top of her dresser.

Why was it just lying around open?

It was driving him crazy, so he grabbed it with the intent of just closing it and putting it into her bookcase.

But then he saw, this wasn't just a book. It was a photo album. And on the page that was currently on display, there was a picture of Amy dressed like an Eskimo on a snow-covered mountain, a sled under her arm.

He knew, he should probably just put it away. This was a private photo album.

But he just couldn't stop himself. He wanted to know more about her.

'Just a little peek', he told himself. 'She did call me a superhero just now. And everyone knows, the hero always peeks.'

So, he browsed through the album, promising himself and her, he would stop instantly if he saw anything too private.

The first thing he noticed – and he was surprised by it – was that there was not a single picture with a man by her side.

Well, she probably just took part in the tradition of getting rid of all pictures of a former lover after a split.

She was alone in most of the pictures. And it seemed to be a collection of various journeys she had taken in the past years.

Amy in front of the Buckingham Palace in London. The Eiffel Tower in Paris. The Colosseum in Rome. The Opera in Sydney. In front of the pyramids in Egypt. On Safari, probably somewhere in Africa.

But Sheldon couldn't help but feel she looked like a different person in all of them. Not nearly as happy and joyful as the woman he had met. She looked… lonely.

Then, there were pictures at different beaches. Inside a hot air balloon. On a boat. One where she was windsurfing.

And one – oh good Lord – on a bridge. Apparently about to bungee jump. Why would she do something like that?

Well, she had mentioned taking a few journeys. But not for the first time, he asked himself, who this woman was. And why she was here in Medford.

He closed the book again and put it back on her dresser, before he looked at her one last time.

She looked so at peace, a smile on her face while she was sleeping. Her nose was whistling a little.

Well, whatever had brought her here, he had to admit he was thankful for it.

But what did it mean, he asked himself. What did their kisses mean to her? Had she felt it too, this insane connection?

Or was this just what she usually did, after going out with someone? But somehow it did not feel that way. It had felt as if it had been special to her.

And aside from that, he had to figure out another thing: What did it all mean to him?