A/N: Thanks so much for the kind reviews! After some not very nice ones, they were greatly appreciated. :D

Final chapter of Part 1, but this story is long from over...

As always, special thanks to Delucababe for the awesome beta job!

Chapter 4 - Making Plans and Moving On

Penny jerked awake a few minutes later with a groan. She had fallen asleep on her arm and the pain shooting through it and the hip she rested on made for a very unpleasant wake-up call. Thirty minutes and one serious pep talk later, Penny emerged from the bathroom feeling slightly better. All she had to do was not think about... things. She would be just fine.

Leonard was in the kitchen with a nice hot mug of coffee waiting for her. She tried to give him a smile, but her face suddenly felt stiff and she realized her lips were chapped.

Leonard looked her up and down, then scrunched up his face in pity.

"Okay, now don't get upset, but I called Bernadette to let your work know you were staying home sick today."

Penny sent him an exasperated look.

"Penny, I don't know if something happened last night or this morning, but you aren't yourself. You need to relax and get a grip on things."

"Leonard! I can't believe you did that! I'm fine..." she trailed off as he lifted an eyebrow and nodded at her feet.

She was wearing two different shoes. She looked down at the black pump on her right foot and the beige flat on her left and let out a slightly hysterical giggle. She looked back up at Leonard and sighed.

"I'm sorry, Leonard. I'm not sure what's wrong with me," she whispered, putting her head in her hands.

He set the coffee down and guided her to sit on the couch.

"I think I know what it is," he confided reluctantly.

Penny placed her hands in her lap and looked up at him warily.

"I think we may have made a mistake running off and getting married like that."

"What? What are you saying? You want a divorce?" Penny demanded jumping to her feet.

"No! No, that's not it at all. I love you, Penny. I want to be your husband. I just think it all happened too fast for you to wrap your head around. I mean, you should have had a bridal shower, your parents here, our friends... We didn't get any of that. Just a quick chapel wedding with strangers as witnesses followed by drinking and sex. And now we're back home, and we're holding on to this huge secret..."

Penny frowned but sat back down again as she contemplated his words.

"So, you think if we tell people we're married I'll feel better?" she asked after a moment.

"I think we need to celebrate our marriage with our friends. Plan a honeymoon. Maybe go look at some houses. We need to plan our future. That's what newlyweds are supposed to do," Leonard enthused.

Penny shook her head and crossed arms defensively. "I'm not good with plans, Leonard. I always screw them up."

Leonard smiled at her. "That's okay, Penny. There really aren't many people out there that don't screw up their plans. The point is to make them. We can change them later if we need to, but I feel like you aren't quite sure what you should be doing. I think it will help ground you if we make a plan."

Penny sighed and thought over his words. Maybe he was right.

"Okay, so what do we plan?" she asked timidly.

He raised a hand and ticked each item off with a finger as if he had a list prepared. "Well, I think we should have a dinner party this weekend to announce our marriage to our friends. Start looking at some nice vacation spots for a honeymoon and turn in time off requests at work. Maybe we could go visit your family in Nebraska then as well. My realtor has a couple of nice houses to show us that are almost exactly half-way in between the college and your office... things like that."

Penny dropped her eyes to the ground. "What about Sheldon?"

Leonard let out a heavy sigh, but when she looked up, he was smiling.

"Well, I hope things go well with him and Amy tonight so they can start planning their future. But even if they don't, it will be okay. I mean, Sheldon has been a fixture in our lives from the day we met. I doubt that will change much going forward."

"And, you don't mind?" she asked, her eyebrow rising in suspicion.

"I would have once, but, sometimes, I think we might need him as much as he needs us."

Penny was quiet for a long moment before getting to her feet. She turned and headed for her bedroom.

"Where are you going?" Leonard asked, sounding concerned.

"To change my shoes. Apparently, we have some houses to look at," she called and was surprised to find the easy smile she gave him was genuine.

When they finally returned to Leonard and Sheldon's apartment that evening, things had turned tense again. Penny was drained and feeling very small and unworthy of all the things Leonard had been doing for her all day. He was obviously perturbed Penny had not liked any of the four houses they had viewed and that she didn't want to take vacation time from work for the honeymoon until the holidays, almost six months away. Penny had warned him she was good at screwing up plans.

As the sun sunk lower in sky, Penny felt the pull of the liquor atop her fridge, anxious to let go of the dark thoughts that never seemed to leave her mind for long. Also, she was pretty sure Leonard would expect sex tonight and she wasn't sure she could go through with it without alcohol.

They ended up eating a frozen pizza and watching some sci-fi show Penny wasn't really paying attention to. She waited until he was deeply absorbed in the show before standing from the couch.

"I'm just gonna run and grab something to sleep in," she explained. He nodded, but didn't take his eyes off of the TV.

She downed three shots of vodka back to back before grabbing her pajamas. She hesitated at the door, her eyes drifting back to the half-empty bottle. Sighing, she hurried over and grabbed it before going back to Leonard's.

She walked into the kitchen and slid the bottle onto the top of their fridge next to Sheldon's cereal. When she was done, she looked over to see Leonard grinning at her.

"What?"

"It's like you actually live here now," he commented happily.

Penny smiled back, but couldn't help feeling a little sad the presence of her alcohol was the tell-tale sign she lived with Leonard.

Sheldon arrived then. He looked a little stunned, but remarkably calm.

"It's over. I failed," he told them stoically, and then went straight to his room.

Penny sipped her cocktail idly as everyone mingled and shared anecdotal stories of the week. The atmosphere was calm and relaxed despite the tense moment when Amy had arrived. However, she and Sheldon had been very civil, if a little cold. The group of friends were sure to keep the two apart as much as they could in the small apartment. Leonard would be making the announcement any moment now and Penny felt her stomach flutter violently. She was unsure if this was through nerves of actually telling people they were married, or excitement of the celebration to come.

Leonard called for everyone's attention and Penny gave him an encouraging smile.

"So, Penny and I decided to throw this party to celebrate some exciting news..."

"Oh my God, you're pregnant, aren't you?" Bernadette demanded, looking at Penny in exasperation.

Penny rolled her eyes and held up her drink, giving it a little shake for emphasis. Bernadette looked sheepish as she apologized to Leonard and asked him to continue.

"As I was saying... Last weekend, Penny and I were struggling over some wedding decisions and decided not to decide. As in, we went to Vegas and are now married!" Leonard finished with a wide smile.

The room went silent for a long moment. It was so long, that it began to get uncomfortable.

Howard was the one to break it. He had looked down as soon as he heard the news, but was now practically glaring up at the newlyweds.

"Really? For years, all of us have been right there with you though all the drama. We watched you come together, fall apart, and come together again... I think I speak for all of us when I say, that was probably the most selfish thing you could do, and you're both jerks," he accused before raising his drink in the air like a mockery of a toast.

Sheldon watched the whole thing from his spot on the couch, quiet but looking at Howard with a frown. He was the only one that had already known as he had been there when they made the decision.

Amy and Raj refused to look at anyone and Bernadette just glared in silent support of her husband's outburst.

Penny suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe, and quickly ran for the bathroom. Bernadette might be short, but she was fast, and she slipped inside the small room before Penny could shut the door.

The petite woman opened her mouth as if she was ready to give Penny an earful, but she noticed Penny was struggling to breathe and so she guided her to sit on the closed toilet.

"Lean over, and put your head between your knees," she ordered.

It took a minute, but soon breathing became easier. Bernadette perched on the side of the tub and started rubbing small circles on Penny's back.

"Leonard mentioned you had an anxiety attack last week," she commented. It wasn't a question so Penny didn't say anything.

"You shouldn't have done it. You shouldn't have married him like that, Penny."

"Leonard agreed," Penny answered simply.

"Of course he did. That man would do anything for you."

"I'm okay now. Just say what you came in here to say," Penny demanded softly. She knew she was being short with her friend but she was tired of all the bullshit and just wanted the evening to be over.

Bernadette looked unsure, but then shrugged. "Fine. I think you are the one who pressed for the Vegas wedding because that was the only way you were going to marry him. A real wedding would have given you too much time to back out and you know you would have."

"What do you mean?" Penny gaped at her. "Bernadette, you've been pushing me to marry Leonard for years! Everyone can't seem to shut up about how wonderful it is we are finally together, and now that we've done it, you all jump down our throats like eloping was our way of giving you the finger!"

"We didn't want this. Not like this."

Penny shook her head, desperately trying to hold back the tears. "But I did this so everyone would be happy!" she admitted weakly. Her eyes lifted pleadingly to meet Bernadette's. "Why can't you all just be happy?"

"Oh Penny, it doesn't matter if we're happy," Bernadette consoled gently. "You are the one who has to live this life, not us. You have do what makes you happy."

"You all have your science and TV shows and stuff. My friends are the only thing I have! How can I be happy if you all aren't happy?" she pleaded.

"You have to figure that out for yourself," Bernadette answered, pityingly.

When the two women returned the group was still solemn, though everyone, even Sheldon, had a drink in their hands.

Howard walked over and gave Penny an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry, Penny. Of course I'm happy you and Leonard are married. I just wish we could have been there. I wanted to be there for it."

Penny hugged him, still having trouble reconciling this man with the sleazy one she had first met.

Howard turned to the group as a whole. "To Penny and Leonard," he said and raised glass. Everyone toasted, and hesitant smiles were given. Penny still felt numb and downed her entire drink at once.

Howard cleared his throat to get everyone's attention again.

"Bernadette and I also have some big news... She has accepted a Vice President position for her pharmaceutical company!"

"Wow! That's great, Bernadette. I thought all the executive level positions were in New York," Penny said with a sinking feeling.

"They are, Penny. Howie has three different universities close to my new office that are head hunting him. Apparently, having an actual astronaut on staff adds to the prestige. We'll be moving in October," Bernadette said quietly.

All eyes went to Raj, who didn't appear to be at all surprised. "They told me first. I won't say there weren't tears and hysterical fits, but I've made my peace with it," he admitted shyly.

Leonard tilted his head and gazed at him suspiciously. "You're going with them aren't you?"

Raj gave them all a blinding smile and nodded. "Yes, but before that I'm going on a trip," he said and looked at Amy.

"Raj came by my office to check on me after... you know, my change of plans. We talked for a while and he offered to let me come with him to India for a few weeks to try and clear my head. Then we might do some traveling. There are so many places I'd like to visit. My life has been on h-hold for a few years, and I have a nice big savings account that I had intended to use to start a life with..." she broke off with a cough.

"What about Emily?" Leonard asked, breaking the awkward silence that had descended after Amy's revelation.

"We're meeting for coffee tomorrow. I'm going to end it," Raj answered with a determined nod of his head.

"Really, just like that?" Penny demanded. She didn't like Emily, but felt like all of her friends were slipping away.

"I've been trying to break up with her for a long time. Watching Amy go through this... It's given me the courage to do it. It's time I do what I want and not what I have to, to make someone like me."

All was quiet for a few minutes, and then Sheldon stood and looked at everyone silently. It looked as if he was dedicating the sight of each of his friends to memory. He saved Penny for last. She felt a stab of heartache when tears began to form in the corner of his eyes.

He quickly nodded his head and went to his room, slamming the door.

The party fell apart quickly after that and soon Penny and Leonard were alone cleaning up the living room and trying to pretend like they couldn't hear Sheldon's muffled sobbing.

Penny stopped what she was doing and walked over to Leonard, taking him by the hand.

"The first house we looked at, the one with the 2nd master suite that you thought was too big," she started, unsure how Leonard was going to react to what she was about to suggest. "If we take that house, Sheldon would have his own space." She hoped her implication was clear. She wasn't about to leave Sheldon alone.

He shut his eyes in brief irritation, but then nodded.

"If that will make you happy, Penny, I'll do it."

End

A/N: That's it for Part 1. Part 2 will start next weekend and pick up a year later. Thanks for reading this far, and hope you continue into the next part. Updates will still be once a week and Part 2 should have 4 chapters.