It was late; Halo night was long-since over and everyone else had gone to bed. Everyone except Sheldon and Penny- even though Leonard stayed way past awkward time. They were watching one of the Evil Dead movies, which were being show in a marathon on one of the movie channels, and Leonard had noticed that Sheldon stopped flinching every time Penny would grab his arm during the scary parts, and that she had taken to burying her face into his shoulder during particularly graphic scenes. But, he had gone to bed a while ago, and it was just the two of them, still up, still watching, huddled on the couch together.

He looked over at her curiously.

"Penny?" he asked, turning the sound down on the movie.

"Hmm?"

"I have a hypothesis to discuss with you."

"Okay..."

"Well... do you remember my suggestion that copulation was merely an unnecessary and unsanitary exchange?"

Penny smiled. "Yes, I do."

"Well, supposing one were to... take care of such business in a shower?"

Penny's eyes widened. "Well... it's been done, and successfully, from what I understand..." she said carefully. "Why, sweetie?"

"Well... it's just..." he fidgeted, looking at his hands in his lap, picking imaginary lint off of his immaculate pants. "I... I have had... inappropriate thoughts, and they are quite distracting..." he confessed. "And, I am usually not prone to such Neanderthalic lack of control of my higher facilities..." he said plaintively. "But, it is affecting my work... which is bad... I'm turning into one of... them..." he said disdainfully.

"Them?" Penny asked, amused, but still in a bit of shock.

"Howard, Leonard, Raj... sophomoric, beneath their potential because they waste their time, faculties and energies on disgusting pursuits. That's never been me!"

He sounded so helpless, Penny's heart twinged, and she took his hands into hers. "Oh, Sheldon..." she breathed. "Honey, that's just... maybe it's because you've fallen in love? Love can kind of... put away reason... And, I don't think that you would want just pure sex, you seem so against it, you would only want that if you loved the person too, right?"

Sheldon nodded vehemently. "Of course! And... I do..." he sighed.

Penny bit her lower lip. "It's that Amy Farrah Fowler, isn't it?"

Sheldon's head popped up in shock. "What?"

Penny blinked furiously, not sure why she was even upset, but...

"You're in love with that little... unfeminine fembot!"

"Penny! No!" he said, reaching for her hands to pull her back to a sitting position. "How... how could you not know?" he asked in a soft, hurt tone.

"Know?" she asked, her voice thick with emotion.

"It is with you that my affections lie... it always has been. It took me a long time to realize it- perhaps too long- but..." he paused, unsure how to word the unfamiliar emotions.

But, Penny took advantage of the pause to throw herself on top of him, her arms around his neck, her hands running through his short, soft hair, and kissed him fully on the mouth. At first he was stiff, and in shock, but after a moment he allowed himself to melt into the kiss, and was giving as well as receiving, his hands moving slightly up and down her back.

She pulled back, and gave him a dazzling smile. "I love you, too, Sheldon."

Sheldon smiled- not his eerie, forced one, but a genuinely happy smile.

"And, we can take things as slow as you need, because I don't want you to feel like you aren't ready for anything..." she fumbled, unfamiliar with this conversation herself.

But, she loved it, because usually guys just pawed at her, saw her as an object. Sheldon, wanted her because she was her, and that... that mad her feel more special than she ever had in her entire life.

'I think, Penny, that I am 32 years old, and we have known each-other better than anyone else for three years. I think if we take things any slower time will cease to exist." he said with a shy smile.

Penny nodded, and stood up, taking his hand. "Come on, Moonpie," she smiled, taking his hand and pulling him to a standing position. "Why don't we go take a shower and go to bed?"

And, Sheldon followed her, nervous but happier than he'd felt in his entire existence.

"Leonard will have a surprise tomorrow for French Toast Day..." he said with a smirk.

Penny grabbed him by the belt. "I think, that we shouldn't talk about Leonard anymore right now. Right now... is about us." she said, using the hand to yank him into the bathroom, towards certain bliss...

_End_