Sheldon and Penny landed back in Pasadena a couple of days after the wedding. They got in late in the evening, and instead of allowing Sheldon to go home and unpack, Penny pulled him into her apartment under the pretense of not wanting to bother Leonard.

While they were in Texas they had stayed with Sheldon's mother. She was a very religious woman and was opposed to the idea of two unmarried young people sharing a bedroom. So Sheldon had slept in his childhood bedroom and Penny had stayed in the room that had once been Missy's. This did not, however, stop Penny from creeping down the hallway once Mary went to bed, in order to snuggle with Sheldon.

Now that they were home and there were no parents in sight, Penny wanted to let Sheldon know just how much hearing him tell her he loved her meant to her.

"Penny, I really do need to unpack. I'm sure Leonard won't mind me coming home at this hour; I'm really fairly quiet. If I leave my dirty clothes in the bag overnight it will cause the bacteria on them to multiply. They need to be put in a hamper."

Penny didn't say anything. She walked up to him, pulled the bag from his hand and dropped it on the floor. Sheldon opened his mouth to protest, but Penny put her arms around his back and slid them up under his shirt. She leaned into him and looked up into his eyes, smirking. "Oh," he said, and the bag of clothes was promptly forgotten.

"I love you," she told him and stretched up to kiss him.

"I love you," he said.

She turned and started walking towards her bedroom. She looked back over her shoulder and beckoned him to follow her by curling her finger. He complied.

In her bedroom, Sheldon leaned down to kiss Penny. Before his lips could touch hers, she put her hands to his chest and pushed him down onto the bed, taking control of the situation. She tore her top up over her head and climbed on top of Sheldon.

Since he had come back to Pasadena and they had finally admitted their feelings to each other, they had slept together many times. At first Sheldon had been inexperienced, but he was a quick learner and he now knew exactly what to do to make Penny feel amazing. He was gentle and attentive, and exactly what Penny needed him to be.

Tonight, however, Penny needed passion. It had been a few days since they had been able to have sex and she was starting to feel pent up. Sheldon saw the smoldering look in her eyes and mirrored it. He grabbed her around the waist and flipped her onto the bed. He bent over her and captured her lips in his own and Penny's hands came up to pull his shirts up and over his head. Their pants were quickly removed and thrown to the floor. They made love frantically and desperately, collapsing upon each other when it was over.

Penny sighed and leaned her head against Sheldon's chest. "A few days without sex and I almost can't handle it. I don't know how I ever survived without this for so long. How I survived without you. While you were living in Texas I was miserable."

"Well, you can't blame me for your lack of a sex life while I wasn't here. I treated you horribly when you came to visit me and I wouldn't have blamed you should you have sought comfort from another man."

Penny patted Sheldon on the tummy. "No, sweetie, I don't mean I was miserable because I wasn't having sex—though I wasn't exactly happy about that—I meant I was miserable because you weren't here. I missed you so much it hurt."

Sheldon pulled her tight to his chest and whispered, "Then I'll never leave you again."

"I'm going to hold you to that," she replied.

The next day was the dress rehearsal for 'Alice'. It went horribly. Penny ripped her costume, flubbed half of her lines and managed to accidentally knock part of the set over. Someone joked that due entirely to Penny, the opening night was going to be amazing.

Penny told this to Sheldon that evening. "But Penny, your inability to memorize your lines and your lack of coordination would indicate that the opening night will not go well at all."

Penny shook her head, "No, Sweetie, it's a superstition in the theatre that if the dress rehearsal goes poorly, then the opening night will go well."

"Oh, I see," he nodded in understanding.

They were sitting next to each other on Penny's couch watching TV. Penny had her legs tucked up underneath her and her head was resting on Sheldon's shoulder. Sheldon had his arm wrapped around Penny, with his hand resting on her hip. She stretched up and kissed him on the cheek.

"I'm going to bed," she told him. "I have to get up early to go into work so I can leave early to get to the theatre on time."

"Okay, I'll be right in," he said as she walked toward her bedroom. Sheldon turned off the TV and straightened up the living room. He grabbed a piece of blank paper and a pen from the table and a scribbled a few words. He left the sheet of paper on the counter in the kitchen next to the coffee pot, and then joined Penny in the bedroom.

Penny's alarm blared at her from her nightstand. She groaned and slapped the off button. The display read '6:00', and she could have sworn that the glowing red numbers were mocking her for being awake so early. Sheldon shifted in his sleep, but didn't wake up. Penny dressed for work, grabbed her purse, and stumbled out of the apartment early enough so that she could stop and pick up a cup of coffee on the way.

The production went perfectly that night. There wasn't a single flaw. When Penny had been on stage, the lights were so bright that she hadn't been able to spot Sheldon and the other boys in the audience. But now that it was over she was excited to see them and hear what they thought about the play and her performance. She rushed out into the lobby, still in full makeup and costume, and craned her neck looking for the guys. She spotted Leonard, Raj and Howard, and waved at them. They waved back at her and she made her way through the crowd to them. All three of them hugged her and praised the performance (Raj mostly nodding in agreement to the others' comments).

"Thanks guys! I'm so glad you liked it! So, where's Sheldon?" She scanned the people around her, expecting Sheldon to magically appear.

"Uh, here's the thing," Leonard started, "I went into Sheldon's office at the end of the day to let him know that I was going home. He told me he was busy and would talk with me later. So I went home. I called him before we left to come here, but his phone went straight to voicemail. I called him again before the show started, and then during intermission. I don't know where he is Penny, I'm sorry."

Penny was livid. How dare Sheldon not come! He was the one who had encouraged her to take up acting again. He knew how much this meant to her. She couldn't think of any excuse he could have that would make her forgive him for missing this. While Penny seethed, and the boys each took a step away from her, she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. She was about to loose it and start screaming; then she heard an unfamiliar voice.

"Excuse me, Penny is it?"

She turned around to face a kind looking, middle aged man. He held out his hand and said, "My name is Bill. I'm a casting agent. I'm currently casting parts for an independent film and was wondering if you might be interested in auditioning."

Penny shook his hand, but it was a minute before she was able to respond. It took a while for her mind to switch from anger to excitement.

"I, yes, I'm definitely interested!" Penny had to restrain herself from jumping up and down at the opportunity that was being offered to her.

"That's great!" Bill told her. He handed her a card. "Give me a call on Monday and we can talk about the film and discuss the part you will be auditioning for. Great job tonight, you stole the show."

"Thank you so much!" Penny gushed. Bill left and Penny turned back to the boys. She began to squeal and hop up and down. They hugged her and congratulated her, and then Penny remembered the missing member of their group and became sullen. "Let's go home, guys," she said.

Penny unlocked the door to her apartment and turned on the light. The place was still clean and organized from Sheldon's tidying the night before. Penny went to the fridge to get a snack. She had been too nervous to eat dinner, so she hadn't had anything to eat since lunchtime. She noticed a piece of paper sitting next to the coffee maker and picked it up. It read:

Penny,

I wanted to leave you a note to wish you luck on the opening of your play (despite my lack of belief in the existence of something as unscientific as luck). As you will most likely leave before I wake in the morning and I will not get the chance to see you before you go on stage, this is my only opportunity to tell you to "break a leg." I am looking forward to watching your performance and I am certain that you will be wonderful as always.

I love you,

Sheldon

Penny reread the note, trying to figure out what had happened. He had obviously written it last night before he came to bed. He had had every intention of coming to see her perform, and yet he didn't show up. Penny was starting to really worry that something terrible had happened. She grabbed her cell and called him. It went directly to voicemail. Penny snapped her phone shut and decided to wait for him to call or come home. She turned on the TV and began watching a movie she had already seen several times. About an hour in, she began to drift off.

Penny woke to the sound of her front door slamming shut. Sheldon stood over her, wide-eyed and clutching a bundle of papers. "Sheldon, what happened, what time is it?" She focused her eyes on the tiny numbers on the DVD player. It was almost three a.m.

"Penny!" he said, clearly out of breath, and nearly hysterical, "I may have just proven string theory."