Richard76310: Most likely. When I turn my hand sideways, I can see a weird curve and bump where the hand and wrist meet. Now I have to wear a bracer around my wrist that prevent me from moving it at all :(
Still, enjoy :)
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters that appeared in the show.
"Jake, Jake, Jake, Jake." a familiar voice made him startle before the hood was pulled from his head, finally allowing him to draw a deep breath.
"Why are you doing this?" Jake whimpered, aware that he was still naked from the waist down. "I did as you asked. I just need some more time so I can try again."
"NO, YOU IDIOT!" the man he knew as Bob screamed at him before hitting him. "You didn't do as I asked. I told you to befriend that girl so you could find out the name of her boyfriend, not try to rape her!"
"But..."
"SHUT UP!" another hit stopped any words before Bob let out a flurry of punches.
"Robert, stop." one of the men who had kidnapped Jake stopped the man. "You're killing him."
"So what?" Bob growled.
"We're not allowed to kill civilians that are not part of a contract." the other guy said.
"He's part of my contract." Bob shot back.
"I'm not going to stand here and watch you kill him." the first man told Bob.
"Then leave."
"Fine." the man said and left the room, the other man following as more sounds of fists hitting a body came from the room. "He's losing it."
"Ricardo, can you explain to me what's going on with him?" the second guy asked. "Why is he so hellbent on finding out who this John really is?"
"John killed Robert's brother Caspar in Nebraska, after Caspar tried to kill John." Ricardo explained. "So, naturally, Robert wants revenge, even though the rest of the organization agreed with John's actions."
"You know, I kind of agreed with Caspar's opinion about the older members taking all the good contracts but I don't want to be part of something that could cause a civil war within the organization."
"Aaron, you'd be useless in one." Ricardo laughed. "Have you ever killed a target?"
"You wouldn't be asking me that if you weren't knowing the answer already." Aaron rolled his eyes." You know that my expertise is cyber-assassinations. I do wonder though why he isn't just asking someone within the organization for this John's real name."
"He did and nobody would answer him." Ricardo told him. "Most didn't know the guy's real name and the rest wouldn't tell Robert because he's Caspar's brother. If you killed someone, would you feel okay if your friends or coworkers told the brother of your target who you are?"
"Point taken." Aaron shrugged. "Still, if Robert kills the guy, he'll cross a line."
"I know." Ricardo sighed. "Unless he manages to take out John quietly, the organization will end him if this John doesn't do it first."
"And us." Aaron reminded him. "We should..."
"Aren't you supposed to look for information?" the aforementioned Robert exited the interrogation room, his hands bloody.
"Jesus, what did you do to him?" Ricardo gasped.
"What I said I would." Robert said and walked past them. "Get to work!"
"Oh fuck!" Aaron cursed when he looked into the room, seeing the half-naked man slumped in his chair, blood running from a multitude of wounds. "How did we not hear him scream?"
"The room is soundproof." Ricardo said while wincing at the sight. "Is he still alive?"
"No, he's dead." Aaron shook his head after checking the man's pulse. "What now? We can't really call the cleaners, can we?"
"No, but I know some people outside the organization that will take care of the body."
"Then call them." Aaron sighed. "I'll do what I do best, scour the net for information."
"You do that." Ricardo nodded and left the room to make the phone call.
"Damn, why did I let myself get sucked into this shit." Aaron groaned and also left to get to his computer.
"Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!" Penny whined while Leonard ran the sponge over head back.
"Big baby." he chuckled.
"Easy for you to say." she grumbled. "You weren't hit with dozens of paint balls all over your body."
"Well, you did try and fail again and again." he shrugged.
"You a annoyingly blasé about the fact that my body, the one you so thoroughly enjoy several times a week, has the coloring of a plum." she moped.
"I don't know what's more sexy right now, your dalmatian-like body or the fact that you used the word blasé." he laughed.
"All joking aside, can Bernadette mix something to help heal these bruises?" she asked.
"No need, I have gotten something yesterday just for this occasion." he said and produced a tube.
"What's this?"
"It's a salve that speeds up the healing of bruises." he explained. "The skin around the bruise will look sickly green for a day or two and then it'll heal away."
"But I have dozens of them." she argued.
"Yes, which means, most of your body will have this sickly green coloring." he nodded. "Essentially, you will look like a sick Hulk."
"Great." she huffed. "Wouldn't I rather be a sick She-Hulk?"
"You're getting sexier every minute." he chuckled.
"Not tonight, honey, I'm in pain." she poked out her tongue. "All jokes aside, do I have to do it again tomorrow?"
"Yes." he nodded. "But you're allowed to wear protective clothing."
"That's something at least." she accepted. "You have something at the university or here at home?"
"We can give you some football stuff at the university." he shrugged.
"Pass." she grinned. "I want to be able to move. You have anything that's protective?"
"I have something here." he nodded again. "It may be a little tight to fit."
"Are you saying I'm fat?" she gasped in jest.
"Are you kidding, you're a cow." he rolled his eyes. "I always wonder how the elevator is able to carry you."
"Sweetie, see these breasts?" she pointed to her chest.
"Hard not to." he grinned.
"Keep talking like that and you won't be playing with them for a while or any other part of my body." she threatened, though both knew she wasn't really serious. "Can you at least give me some pointers on how to finish the course?"
"That would defeat its entire purpose." he told her. "But you already have all the information you need."
"The hurting spots on my body say the opposite." she grumbled.
"That doesn't change the fact that you have all you need." he said. "You just have to look."
"What does that mean?" she asked.
"It means what it means."
"Seriously, can you be any more cryptic?" she huffed.
"I could but again, helping you would defeat the goal of these exercises." he repeated.
"I don't see what getting some thing out of a chest would teach me." she sighed. "Sheldon didn't quite explain it."
"The goal is to reach your target." Leonard told her. "Yes, Sheldon likes video games, hence the item in a chest but it's a stand-in for a human target. But we couldn't really put someone in there waiting for you to reach them."
"That makes sense, I guess." she conceded. "Okay, now help me dry off so I can go to bed."
"And rib the lotion over your bruises." he added.
"That too." she groaned as Leonard held her hand while she swung her legs out of the bathtub.
He helped her dry herself off, running the towel over her back and then she brushed her teeth, not wanting to stay up for much longer. While she was brushing, he applied the lotion to her back and then handed her the tube, letting her apply it over the rest of her bruises herself. Once she was finished, she put on her pajamas and headed to bed, earlier than Leonard, who stayed up to watch some more TV and peruse contracts.
Tyson followed her into the bedroom and laid down next to the bed, far enough away so she wouldn't accidentally step on him if she got out of bed but close enough to protect her if anything happened, not that it would. She gave a whistle and tapped the bed, the canine quickly jumping onto the bed. She pulled him closer to her and started rubbing his belly, the dog lifting his legs to expose more of that area.
"You're such a beautiful boy." she cooed, feeling his nose gently bop her face and his tongue lashing out in a dog's version of a kiss.
She did it for several minutes until she felt her eyes shut on their own, upon which she gave Tyson a gentle push, the dog obediently jumping down and laying back down at the spot where he had been before. Penny hoped that the next time she did the course would end up with less bruising and more success.
"This is impossible!" she huffed loudly, her body again covered in paint splotches.
"At least you're taking it better this time." Leonard chuckled.
"The suit helps." she nodded, looking down at the leather she was wearing.
Leonard had been right when he had said that it would be a tight fit. When he had presented her with the attire, she had eyed it with some doubt and it had been impossible to put it on without using talcum powder on her skin so the moisture on her body didn't make the leather stuck after pulling it partially up. It was so tight that she couldn't even wear a bra, the only other part of clothing she was wearing the smallest thong she had along with a pair of socks.
"Again." Leonard said. "Remember, you have all the information to beat the course."
"You keep saying that, yet I always cause the alarm to go off." she grumbled.
"But you look hot doing it." he winked.
"That I do." she agreed, the tight leather showing off her figure. "Hey, want me to accompany you to the cafeteria wearing this?"
"Better not." Leonard laughed. "If you do that, nerds will faint, older professors will have heart attacks and everyone else who's male will hit on you. And some women probably as well."
"Yeah, better just you seeing me like this." she giggled and pulled down the zipper of the suit to let some air hit her naked, but still somewhat greenish skin. "Dammit, where have I seen this suit before."
"Well, it's not a unique suit." he said quickly, too quickly in fact.
"Wait a second!" she suddenly realized. "This is the suit that this vampire lady was wearing in these Underworld movies we watched back in Vermont."
"Yeah, it is." he chuckled. "Well, a replica of it. And not worn by anyone before you."
"If someone else had worn it before me, I would have hit you right now." she gave him a glare.
"Noted." he laughed.
"I do remember what the vampire did with her beau when they were in that container." she giggled and pulled the zipper completely down.
"Oh?" he smiled and gently ran his hands over her breasts. "The bruising seems to be healing nicely."
"That's what you're focusing on right now?" she rolled her eyes and swung her legs over his lap to sit down on it, only to jump up again. "No!"
"What's wrong?"
"I can't sit on your lap." she groaned, holding her ass. "Still hurts too much."
"Probably because the surface of my lap is hard and also limited to a small part of your cheeks, unlike a couch." he surmised.
"So, your next job is to get some meat on your lap." she giggled.
"How about I keep my rock hard lap and you finish the course without getting shot in the ass with paint balls?" he countered.
"You're no fun." she moped and pulled the zipper back up to get ready for the next attempt. "What time is it?"
"Almost noon." he told her. "Wanna do another run before lunch?"
"Huh, I'm trying to decide whether to do another run or simply wear this getup for lunch." she grinned. "To see if nerds really faint."
"Penny." he sighed.
"I'm kidding." she smiled, dropping a quick kiss on his lips. "Now, watch me fail again."
"If that's your attitude, you will definitely fail."
"How is she doing?" a voice interrupted them.
"President Siebert." Leonard nodded to his boss.
"Oh, hey Jeremy." Penny smiled at the man.
"Why are you on a first name basis with him and I still have to call him by his title?" Leonard wondered aloud.
"Because I'm your boss and I offered it to her." Jeremy shrugged.
"So, can I call you Jeremy?" Leonard asked.
"Only if we're alone." Jeremy nodded. "Otherwise, we need to keep our interaction professional. So, how's she doing?"
"Not well." Leonard shook his head.
"I'm green all over." Penny confirmed.
"Given that this is only the first course, I'm concerned." Jeremy admitted and looked at the blackboard where the blueprints were hanging from. "But, you got everything you need to finish this one."
"Ugh, you too?" Penny huffed.
"Leonard, I need to talk to you in private regarding some of your lab work." Jeremy turned to him. "You have time?"
"Sure, we have to wait to go to lunch anyway until the break is officially over." Leonard nodded.
"Why?" Jeremy asked.
"I don't want students to gawk at her and then try to learn more about her but more importantly, I don't want faculty members to see her and wonder who she is and why she's here every day." Leonard explained.
"Ah, I get it." Jeremy nodded. "Well, come with me, I think I have a solution for that."
"What am I supposed to do in the meantime?" Penny asked.
"Figure out how to beat the course." Jeremy laughed as they left.
"Ugh!" she cursed and went into the course again, only to be shot once more in the first room. "Shit!"
"So, got hit again, huh?" a returning Leonard asked, ten minutes after he had left, seeing Penny with yet another fresh spot of paint.
"Shut up!" she grumbled. "What did Jeremy want?"
"Just some stuff for my job." he replied. "I mean, my cover job. And he gave me this for you."
"What is it?" she asked, looking at the card with her face and name on it.
"You're now officially a member of the staff." he said. "More specifically, my lab assistant."
"Cool." she grinned. "Why though?"
"Because now we can go to lunch at a normal hour and you can also use the university gym."
"That's nice." she nodded. "What's the pay?"
"Pay?" he laughed. "You're not actually doing anything."
"But wouldn't that stand out, having an employee that doesn't get paid?" she wondered.
"Interns often don't get paid, their reward is the experience." he shrugged.
"So, what if I showed up every day?"
"And do what? Standing around in my lab watching me work?" he grinned.
"Kinda." she giggled.
"It's not as if you need the money." he said. "Or did you spend it all?"
"No, I didn't, it's still in a bag under our bed." she sighed. "By the way, didn't you say that we would... do something with the money so I have it in a bank account and not just in cash?"
"Yeah, we should really get on that." he nodded. "But for now, get changed."
"For what?" she wanted to know.
"We're gonna go to lunch, but I can't have you walk into the cafeteria like a leather-clad goddess with paint all over her."
"And if I just washed the paint off?" she suggested.
"I can't have you walk into the cafeteria like a leather-clad goddess, period." he winked. "Too many people would have too many questions."
"Like who I am?"
"More like, how a supposed nerd like me would get a bombshell like you." he said. "They don't know what I really do or how much money I have."
"You know, I find it sad that a pairing like us is so unbelievable in their eyes." she sighed. "I think I just throw some clothes over this, it was a pain getting into it."
"Okay." he nodded and waited until she was done, the leather hidden by her pants and her turtleneck sweater. "You look a bit like Howard."
"What? Why?" she looked down at herself. "Does Howard have a stunning ass and great breasts?"
"No, but he usually wears turtlenecks." Leonard chuckled. "Shall we?"
"We shall." she replied and linked her arm through his offered one.
True to his words, the heads of several male students turned into their direction when they walked across campus to get to the faculty cafeteria. Her arm being entwined with Leonard's told them her relationship status but Penny wondered how many would be hitting on her right now if she had actually walked alone clad in the leather outfit from her training.
Too many probably. Though she was sure that these students were adult enough to accept a rejection, the last thing she would have wanted was to break someones arm to underline a point. They entered the building and Leonard got them a tray each before leading her to a screen where several meals were listed.
Leonard pushed in his employee card and pressed a few buttons, one for the meal, another for the drink and a third one for dessert, receiving a receipt with a number on it for his order. Penny did the same, choosing a large salad with bread, a glass of water and a piece of cheesecake as dessert.
"So, why didn't you let me put my new employee card into the slot?" she asked him while they waited in line to get their food.
"Because you don't actually make any money, remember?" he told her, quiet enough for the other people close to them not to hear. "But I'm going to talk to Siebert about this."
"You mean I'll be getting paid?" she giggled.
"In a way." he nodded. "We can give him a monthly sum of your cash money and he turns that into a salary for you. That way you get paid and can pay for some things here."
"Isn't that kinda money laundering?"
"In a sense, yes, though the money didn't come from committing a crime." he confirmed. "He knows how to bring your money into the books so it won't bring up red flags. You will of course have to pay taxes for that money."
"At least I have some in my bank account then." she chuckled. "It's always weird to take cash everywhere."
"I still like to pay with cash, less risk of someone tracing back my purchases." he shrugged.
"Leonard, finally here at the normal lunch hour?" the woman behind the counter grinned at him.
"Hey Edna." Leonard greeted her. "Yes, this time the normal hour."
"Hey Edna." Penny smiled at the familiar woman.
"I'm still hearing wedding bells." Edna laughed as she put Leonard's order on his plate, doing the same with Penny right after.
"Stop it." Leonard laughed.
"Why does she keep saying that?" Penny asked once they were on their way to the tables.
"Edna has always been like that." he said. "She's a hopeless romantic but I admit, she can discern well when two people are meant for each other."
"So, she thinks we're meant for each other?" she giggled.
"Pretty much." he nodded. "Then again, who else could you or I be with that would be fine with the life we're living? Or about to live, in your case."
"True." she admitted. "Thinking back to my high school days, there's nobody I'd trust with knowledge about the business. And keeping it secret would be impossible in the long run."
"Ah, Leonard, good." Sheldon waved them to the table. "Any news on the experiment for my theory?"
"I'm building it." Leonard told him.
"Penny, how's the course going?" Howard asked.
"Shut up." she huffed. "Every time I ask, I get told that I have all the information to beat it, yet I don't know what they mean. Even Jeremy said it."
"Jeremy?" Raj looked at her confused.
"President Siebert." Leonard clarified.
"His first name is Jeremy?" Raj was surprised. "Since when are you on a first name basis with the university president?"
"Since he offered it to me." Penny shrugged and began eating.
"He never offered it to us." Howard moped.
"He did to me but only when we're in private." Leonard told him. "Given that me and him are peers in a sense and it stays formal in public due to him being my boss."
"That makes sense." Raj accepted.
"Penny, when do you think you will finish the course?" Sheldon asked.
"Why?"
"Because there are more I have to build and have you do." Sheldon told her. "The current one is only the first and easiest."
"Wait, this is the easiest?" she groaned. "I've been trying for a week to get through this one."
"Then why haven't you, you have everything..."
"...I need to get through it, I know, you keep saying it." she huffed. "Doesn't mean I know what that means."
"Leonard, what do you two talk about after the coitus?" Sheldon asked his friend.
"About a lot of things but not how to finish the course." Leonard told him. "She's supposed to figure it out on her own."
"I think Sheldon just did some sarcasm." Raj mentioned.
"No, that was a genuine inquiry." Sheldon looked confused.
"Never mind." Raj rolled his eyes.
"Who's going to observe my next attempts?" Penny asked around.
"I'll stay with you." Leonard said.
"But what about my experiment?" Sheldon was affronted.
"Don't worry, I can work on that while observing Penny." Leonard placated him.
"You better be." Sheldon said. "I don't want to walk in on you doing coitus or you simply glaring at her lady parts."
"Please stop talking about my lady parts." Penny pleaded.
"Yeah, you could just show them to us." Howard grinned.
"Howard, one more quip like this and you need to pray that I'm in a good mood." Leonard glared at his friend.
"Why?" Howard asked.
"Because when I'm in a good mood, I will be the one punishing you for that." Leonard said. "If I'm in a bad mood and want to see you suffer, I'll tell your fiance."
"Jesus, don't do that!" Howard pleaded. "I promise, I'll never talk about her lady parts again. Her gorgeous..."
"Howard!" Leonard hit his arm.
"Ouch!" Howard winced. "Jeez, point taken."
They finished their lunch and went back to their respective work spaces. Leonard accompanied her to the course and watched as she failed multiple times again, the paint balls hitting her at different spots but always before she could even get past the first room. She knew that her problem was the security camera but she could for the life of her not figure out how to not be seen by it.
Two hours after lunch, she gave up for the day and left to get back to the dogs and give them their exercise while Leonard went back to to his lab to do his work for Sheldon. Another three hours later, the guys arrived home, Leonard and Howard carrying the food for the day. It was one of the rare evenings where nobody talked about her failure to complete the course. It was also one where the guys didn't stay together to play, so Penny soon found herself back in their apartment, waiting for Leonard to return from his evening walk with the dogs.
"We're back." Leonard said when he arrived, midway through the TV show she was watching.
"Almost an hour, you're rarely out that long with them." she mentioned.
"Actually, I regularly are out with them for an hour in the evenings, only we're not in Vermont and I have a regular work schedule now." he huffed. "Well, I'm off to take a shower."
"Have fun." she grinned.
She whistled for the dogs to join her on the couch, both canines pressing their backs against her legs so she could rub their bellies. She did this for roughly five minutes until Leonard's phone rang. Normally, she wouldn't have bothered but when she saw the word 'Dad' on the screen, she couldn't stop herself.
"Hey Alfred." she smiled into the phone, immediately starting a video chat.
"Oh, hello Penny." Alfred greeted her, a little confused. "Where's Leonard?"
"He's in the shower, but should be out soon." she told him. "How have you been?"
"Oh, fine." Alfred said. "A bit bored because my boy isn't here to visit. How are the boys?"
"They're great." Penny told him and showed him the dogs.
"Aw, they've really accepted you." Alfred chuckled. "That makes it official, you'll be my daughter-in-law in the near future."
"You too?" Penny rolled her eyes. "The cafeteria woman makes those kind of remarks too."
"It will happen, trust me." Alfred laughed. "So, how does your training go?"
"It sucks." Penny huffed. "I'm supposed to finish a training course by retrieving an object but I don't even get through the first room. I always get shot with paint balls when the security camera catches me."
"Didn't Leonard give you the blueprints?" Alfred asked.
"His friend Sheldon made the course. But he gave me the blueprints and everybody says that I have everything I need to finish it but it doesn't work." she complained.
"Can you show me?"
"Sure." Penny nodded and got up, switching the camera lens to forward and holding it towards the copy of the blueprints they had in the apartment.
"Well, you do have everything to get through that course." Alfred said after a few seconds of looking at them.
"Oh come on, you too?!" Penny whined. "I've practically memorized the floor plans but it doesn't help. The camera coverage is too good."
"Penny." Alfred said in teacher mode, the way he said it getting her attention immediately. "What plans did you study?"
"Well, the floor plans with the camera locations." she pointed to the set on the right.
"Study the left ones too." Alfred winked at her.
"Hey, who's on the phone?" an appearing Leonard asked, wearing his robe.
"It's your dad." she held the device out to him.
"Hey dad." Leonard said into the speaker and walked into the kitchen to catch up with his father.
Meanwhile, Penny walked back to the blackboard to look at the plans again. Following Alfred's advice, she focused on the plans on the left side that showed the hallways from a ground perspective, their width and the location of the cameras.
And suddenly, the solution came to her.
End of chapter here. Typing with one hand is a pain -.-
Still, review please :)