Chapter Text
Hi there! How are you doing?
I'm excited to finally publish one of my new fanfictions! I'm working on more stories and comics as we speak, thanks for your patience waiting for more stories from me!
This story is based on an idea from zeezeesfun post on tumblr, who wondered what would happen if Amy showed up on Sheldon's door on S9E08. I liked the premise and it gave me this idea! Hope you like it!
Please like and review if you enjoy my stories! It's a huge motivation to keep writing them.
Huge thanks to Mike, my beta, for all the help correcting my grammar mistakes. Remember english is not my native language. And also thanks to Fran for her support on the plotting of this story. And of course, thanks to my friends for making my work possible!
Enjoy
Amy sighed as she arrived at 4A's door. Sheldon Cooper's door. Her ex-boyfriend's door.
Ex, the term itself hurt. Amy blinked and inhaled sharply; her hand raised tentatively to knock. She stopped it midair. She couldn't do it.
She exhaled, placing that same hand on her chest. Her heart was beating fast, too fast. She closed her eyes and tried to calm down.
I shouldn't have come. Why was she here? She was extremely nervous. Maybe it was better to leave, before anyone realized she had been there. Maybe another woman would come after all, beating the puzzle test her ex-boyfriend posted on the internet. The same one she easily beat during a boring Saturday evening.
She looked down at her feet, which felt rooted to the floor. Her instinct urged her to run, but she couldn't move. A sad smile adorned her face briefly. The test had been amusing to solve, at least she had had some fun with it. They were a bunch of smart puzzles, difficult but playful. Unique , like the creator. She had missed this kind of distraction, like the games she used to play with Sheldon, that stimulated her brain in a way no one else could. She missed him, badly. More than she wanted to admit. He was constantly in her thoughts, and that was the reason she tried to distract herself with everything she could, mostly work. She had been working nonstop, trying to avoid any social life with their friends. Her only friends. The girls had been insisting, but she mostly wanted to be home when she wasn't working. But it was then when her loneliness consumed her.
Today she was supposed to be dating a guy, an English man named Dave. Last week, she went on a date with him. Why shouldn't she? Sheldon told her he had asked some women out, that day they accidentally met at the building stairs. That was, by the way, one of the reasons she had been trying not to meet at Penny's with the girls. ' I've been told it's a good way to move on.' he had said. Trying to move on . Amy still didn't know how she contained her tears that day. It felt like a stab in her chest. The waterfalls had come when she arrived home. She decided that day that she needed to move on too. She hadn't had the courage to go on an actual date, after leaving Sheldon. But she had promised herself, that she would try, at least once. Just for one date . She owned it to herself.
So she tried. She had been saying no to multiple guys who had been asking her out, like Kripke for example. So when the occasion arose, she decided to agree to go out with Dave. He was a nice guy; she had had a nice evening talking with him. Everything was good. There was nothing wrong with him. He even kissed her, a chante kiss, on her doorstep. She didn't expect it so it took her by surprise. It felt foreign, strange even, to kiss another man that wasn't Sheldon. She didn't know how to feel about that. Maybe she just needed time, she had thought then. So when he had asked her to go out again, at first, she said yes. But there was something in her gut that made her feel guilty. She had chickened out and cowardly ditched him by canceling the date at the last moment.
She had tried one date, and it didn't work well. Somehow, being out with Dave didn't feel right at all.
That's why that same afternoon, after canceling Dave's date, she found herself lazily browsing the internet, seeking a pastime to help distract her mind. Nothing satisfied her though, everything was boring. She thought of working on some of her work papers ideas, at least that could be distracting, so she searched for some Caltech documentation she had been wanting to read. She felt like a loser, working on a Saturday evening, while everyone was probably having fun and with friends and respective lovers. While trying not to mope, a search result piqued her attention. It was an advertisement and it intrigued her. It was announced that an intelligent professor at Caltech was seeking a girlfriend to date. This was suspiciously like something Sheldon would do, and she was about to pass, but the test seemed fun to do, so she did it. She promised herself she would only do the test for fun, even if an address was shown, and if her suspicions were confirmed, she could always pass. Maybe work a little, watch another rerun of her favorite show, try to eat something without throwing up, and try to sleep. Usually her nights since she broke up with Sheldon ended with her stomach constricted from crying until she fell asleep from exhaustion.
She started with the first puzzle, and it was fun, so she tried the second one and she felt somehow challenged by it. She'd quickly advanced, getting all the clues easily, but when the address was revealed it confirmed her suspicions and that had been harder than she thought it would be. It was him . Of course it was. Since the beginning she knew it had to be him. Only Sheldon would have done something like this, make women compete for him in a battle of wits and for the winner to come through his door. But were there any women battling for him? The ad had been posted that same day. Probably no one had seen it except for her. Or maybe she wasn't the only one?
Amy exhaled nervously at the thought. The time the test said to show up was coming up and as she quickly checked her wristwatch, she knew she needed to decide if she was going to knock on his door.
The rational part of her brain told her to run, to avoid an uncomfortable situation. She was already hurt, and to have it confirmed that way that Sheldon was looking for a new girlfriend was painful. He was moving on; he was replacing her.
She couldn't blame him. She had tried to replace him too; she had tried to forget him. Only to realize that the sad truth was that she couldn't. But she was sure he already had, hadn't he? She knew he couldn't forget, but he was a master at blocking his feelings and emotions and at moving on with his life. To put down any feeling for her... if he had ever had any.
Amy shook her head. Of course he had had feelings for her. He had told her he loved her. At least once. But… Did he love her enough ? How much was enough? She didn't ask for a lot, she wasn't someone who could compete in some leagues. Not that she wanted to anyway. She already felt lucky to have Sheldon holding her hand or kissing her on date nights. They had been in a roller coaster relationship for years, with him even jumping on a train and leaving her for weeks, like she meant nothing to him. It had been… exhausting to be Sheldon Cooper's girlfriend. Had she wanted more of him? Of course, but had she tried to push him? No! Absolutely not, her expectations were always low, veeeery low. But the night of their fifth anniversary, that moment had hurt her so much. It had been the breaking point. How exasperating it was to discover he hadn't been able to focus on her while kissing her. She still felt angry thinking about it. Instead of being 100% with his girlfriend, he had been musing on his stupid tv shows and other silly stuff! In the most intimate moment of the date! It had hurt her too much.
Somehow, she thought she knew the reason. It was probably how his brain functioned. His very complex and singular brain. He wasn't a normal person. Neither was she. She knew that his brain couldn't shut down, always processing a million thoughts. But it was painful anyway. It had made her reconsider everything in a way she never thought she would.
It still hurt, being in front of his door again, months after their anniversary.
Nevertheless, she had decided to come. She had had the urge to, even knowing he was behind the test. Because she was the only one who could decipher his stupid tests, right?
Panic cursed through her spine. What if there was another woman inside already?
She didn't know why she wanted to punish herself that way, but she needed to know . Gathering all her strength, she did what she knew best: she masked all her feelings in a stoic face. She didn't want to show any emotion. Or how it pained her to see he was replacing her in his heart's spot.
2 minutes left… It's now or never.
Amy knocked 4A's door.
She heard some rumbling and voices, and then silence. Someone approached the door, she heard some footsteps, but no one opened it. She knew they were probably watching her through the peephole. She waited.
She heard more voices and rushed steps.
"Sheldon don't..." Howard's voice was at the other side of the door.
The door opened fast, Sheldon was in front of her, looking at her, surprised, shocked and astonished.
"Amy."
"I told you not to open it." Howard winced behind him. He tried to say it low, but Amy could hear him. "Hi Amy." He greeted her and retreated cowardly to the back of the apartment, where Raj was standing with widened eyes.
Amy shyly gestured to the guys with her hand in greeting and then focused on Sheldon, who was still silent in front of her. His face was unreadable.
It hurt to be in front of him. She shouldn't have come. She knew this was a bad idea. Too late.
"Sheldon."
"Can I help you?" He said, his face void of any emotion.
"I completed an online test." She tried to sound firm and steady. Secure of herself. "And it ended here."
"Y-you, you did it?" Sheldon's eyes flickered over her face; some emotion traveled over his features. Amy could see it but didn't know what it was.
Howard and Raj looked at her from afar. She ignored their surprised looks and their whispers. She needed to just say what she came to say and leave as fast as possible.
"I didn't want to come when I realized this was the address." She quickly pointed out, looking down for a moment.
"But you came." Sheldon simply said, he sounded so calm. It unnerved her. She looked back at him.
"Just to show off that I deciphered the answers to your test. It was… what would be the best word to describe it?" She looked up to the ceiling and placed her finger on her chin. "Cute. Entertaining, but easy." She tried to sound triumphant.
Sheldon was just speechless, as he opened and closed his mouth like a fish but said nothing. More whispers came from behind him as his friends kept commenting from afar about what they were witnessing. Amy kept ignoring them.
"S-since when do you know Klingon?" Sheldon asked.
Oh, that. Of course he was surprised. The test required translating Klingon into ancient Sanskrit. He had to know she knew Sanskrit, but not a made-up language from one of his favorite goofy space shows.
Amy raised an eyebrow playfully. She could have so much fun with that.
"SoH lumerlaw'lu'bogh 'e'?" She tried her best to say 'Did that surprise you?' In Klingon. Then she winked at Howard and Raj, who were as speechless as Sheldon.
For this exact moment, Amy felt that coming here was worth it. The looks on their faces was all she needed. She almost chuckled, but the look Sheldon was giving her was affecting her too much. She couldn't read him. Was he happy? Was he angry? He was surprised, that she was sure of it.
Maybe now he would realize how much she had done for him during these past five years, even learning a language of a show he loved. She had planned to surprise him with that one day. Well, that day had arrived. It wasn't as she imagined, but it worked nonetheless.
After a moment of silence, Sheldon stepped aside and opened the door further.
"You completed the test, congratulations." He said casually, gesturing with his hand open the way in. "D-do you want to come in?" He seemed nervous and quickly added. "To have some tea?"
Amy looked at the scene in front of her. Memories of their first meeting came quickly to her mind. How in that first meeting he had invited her to stay with him in that cafeteria, in front of the same friends who were now here with the same expressions on their faces. Shequickly pushed those thoughts away.
"I-I" Amy hadn't thought this far when she decided to come here. She only wanted to tell him she did it, she completed his stupid test. And maybe, just maybe, show him she was the only one that would. Why she had felt the need to do it was beyond her reasoning.
"I better be going." She avoided his eyes and rubbed her hands nervously. She needed to go now before her facade would fall and showed any emotion. She couldn't emotionally afford that now.
"Hey! Is that the address of the ad?" An unknown voice stopped their awkward moment. They both turned surprised to the voice at the same time.
A tall, beautiful, blonde woman was there, on the stairs, looking at Amy and Sheldon with a bright smile.
"Hi! I'm Vanessa Bennett." She looked at Amy, whose face turned pale in a matter of seconds, and then she focused on Sheldon, her smile increased. "Are you the physicist who placed the ad on Craigslist?"
"Hi Vanessa, yes, it was me." Sheldon replied, his eyebrows raised in surprise.
Amy eyed the woman in front of her. An actual woman, other than her, completed the test? She quickly gazed at Sheldon, suddenly afraid of his reaction. Amy didn't expect to have… competition . Not that she was competing for him, but… that woman standing there was an unexpected arrival. And for what she could read in Sheldon's face, he wasn't expecting her either.
"Sorry it took a while for me to get here." The woman approached them, slightly out of breath. It was clear she had run up the stairs to get there. "I was stuck in this boring symposium on atomic spectroscopy when I came across your ad, and it saved my night. The puzzles were really fun." She looked at Amy like she wanted her to join in about the fun of the puzzles. She probably guessed Amy was there for the same reason as her. "I've never had to translate Klingon into ancient Sanskrit before." Vanessa addressed directly to Sheldon. And she really seemed to mean it. She looked like a smart and bright woman, with a natural beauty that Amy envied since the first moment she saw her.
"Careful, it's addictive." Sheldon smiled at Vanessa. She smiled back and Amy felt like the ground was about to suck her in. What is happening? Was she witnessing Sheldon flirting with another woman in front of her?
Howard and Raj in the background seemed to have the same thoughts, as they were gesturing with two fingers and they were clearly perplexed by Sheldon having two women at his door.
Amy watched their exchange in front of her with widened eyes and with a burning feeling that was growing inside of her. Was she…. jealous ?
Sheldon checked his watch before speaking again. He sighed. Was he oddly relieved or was that Amy's imagination? She was still perplexed.
"Sorry. As you know, you missed the deadline." He said to Vanessa. "Thanks for playing."
Vanessa pouted, but she didn't seem upset. "Anyway, I just, I knew I had to meet the person responsible for such a brilliant idea." She briefly looked at Amy. "Sorry I couldn't get here on time."
Amy felt a warm feeling spreading inside her. Was Sheldon rejecting that woman? That tall, beautiful, smart woman in front of him? Well, it was because of the time, she knew that, but it was happening anyway. She felt a wave of satisfaction. She was now glad she decided to come on time, even if it was just to witness this .
Howard and Raj seemed as shocked as Amy was, as they were watching the exchange over Sheldon's shoulder.
"I would like to have that promised tea." Amy suddenly blurted. She didn't know why, but she was accepting Sheldon's invitation. Maybe it was her sudden feeling of jealousy, maybe her pride. Was she feeling possessive for a man who wasn't even hers?
Sheldon gaped at her, and his features changed. He looked at her face, inspecting her. He briefly smiled.
"Good." He said.
Vanessa looked back and forth at the pair in front of her.
"Congratulations." Vanessa spoke directly to Amy for the first time. "You won. You made it faster than me." She smiled and waved goodbye to them. "Have fun, there aren't a lot of men who love physics, archaic languages, and flags of the world."
"I am a bit of a unicorn." Sheldon shrugged.
Amy looked at the woman who was turning to leave. Yes, she was right. Amy won. Amy solved it first, she arrived first. She was the one who won tonight. But it didn't feel like winning at all. On the contrary, this wretched feeling Amy had inside her only grew more intense.
Before Vanessa could go, Howard stepped out of the apartment, "Hey Vanessa, wait for us!" She turned to meet the couple of men who were hiding all the time in the apartment.
"I'm Howard, this is Raj. We work at Caltech too. "
"Oh, you do?" Vanessa said brightly.
"You must like the stars," Raj said in his best flirtatious voice while running to catch her. "Because you look just like one. And believe me, I know. I'm an astrophysicist."
"I love Astronomy!" Vanessa said happily while walking down the stairs, Raj following her as they kept talking.
"Bye Sheldon, Amy, have fun." Howard passed between them, on his way to follow his friend and the new woman. Happy to be escaping a very awkward situation with the broken couple.
"Bye." Sheldon and Amy said in unison, not really realizing what was happening anymore.
As their friends disappeared down the stairs, they looked back at each other. The situation suddenly hitting them now that they were alone.
"So, tea?" Sheldon gestured Amy in for the second time that night.
"Oh, right, tea." Amy gulped and stepped into 4A. Months after their fifth anniversary she was back in the place she feared the most. She couldn't take back the invitation now, right?
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