"Come on, pick up." Penny paced outside the chapel, back in her own clothing, as she tried to call Amy for the third time. If she didn't pick up, her next call would be to Bernadette. And that would probably mean a lot of questions Penny didn't want to answer, and everyone would know within seconds.

"Please, Amy," she whispered into the phone. But the ringing persisted.

Muttering a curse, she ended the call, and went back into her contacts. She hovered over Bernadette's number. Her heart thudded with anxiety-it wasn't Bernadette's company she wanted right now. She needed someone who could keep this quiet for a little bit longer, before the inevitable drama that was sure to unfold.

Penny scrolled down a little further, and hit the dial button.

The phone rang three times. She imagined saying Sheldon's name after each ring, and huffed in amusement.

"Hello."

"Sheldon?" His voice sounded strange, "Are you okay?"

A long silence followed. Penny began to wonder if the call got cut off. She pulled the phone from her ear-no, they were still connected. "Sheldon?"

"I'm here."

He sounded so sad. Penny's troubles fell away as she only thought about her friend. "What happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

Penny frowned. That didn't sound good.

"Is there something you need?" Sheldon asked.

She bit her lip as she thought about her request. Sheldon wouldn't like it, and if he was already in a mood, he'd like it even less. But she really didn't want to call Bernadette until she had to. "Well..."

"You might as well spit it out, dithering isn't going to make this any less painful."

Oh yeah, he was in a mood. She decided to bite the bullet. "I need you to pick me up."

"Why? Aren't you with Leonard?"

"Not...really. No. I-" She took a deep breath. "We kind of got into a fight." Well, it wasn't a complete lie.

"Of course you did. But it doesn't follow that I have to pick you up."

Penny grit her teeth and took another breath. Stay calm. "I know it doesn't, Sheldon, I'm asking you as my friend."

"As a favor?"

"Sure. As a favor. I'll take you to the train museum as a reward."

"Hmm. Well, that is tempting. But hardly equitable. You do realize what you're asking of me, don't you?"

"Okay, fine, whatever you think is equitable, I'll do it. Please pick me up?"

"Are you in Las Vegas?"

Penny sighed. "Yes."

"I've never driven that far, Penny."

Disappointment settled into her gut. It was time to call Bernadette. "Forget it," she said, "I'll call someone else."

"Did I say no?"

Penny blinked. "Uh, so you will come and get me?"

"I suppose. It's not like I will be able to sleep tonight anyway. And a friend needs my help. Far be it for me to ignore a damsel in distress."

Penny's heart warmed at his words, remembering the last time he called her that. She made him drive that time, too. "Thank you, Sheldon."

"Don't thank me yet. You don't know what I'll come up with as an equitable reward."

Penny smiled. "You're right, I don't know. But I'm thanking you anyway."

"Text me your coordinates."

They ended the call, and she texted the address. With her heart in her throat, she walked back inside the chapel.

Leonard was long gone when Penny returned inside. She was relieved. Confrontation sucked, and she knew she had fucked up. He had every right to be angry with her. There was nothing she could have said, nothing she could do to make this right.

The chapel manager let her wait for Sheldon in his office; they needed the bridal suite for other couples stumbling in to tie the knot. She dozed off for a while, and then someone shook her awake.

Penny blinked at the face hovering above her. "Oh. Hi."

Sheldon thrust her car keys into her hand. "You're driving back."

She sat up and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. She took a good look at her friend, who seemed a little shaken up. "Are you okay?"

"No, I am not okay! I have never driven that far in my life! Do you know what sustained anxiety does to the human body? Trapped in a rolling box for five hours, in a perpetual state of fight or flight?"

"Five hours?" she asked, surprised. "It's only a four hour drive."

"Yes, well, I was obeying the speed limit, unlike every other crazy person on the highway."

Penny could see that Sheldon was sincerely upset, and she stood up to comfort him. "Okay. Why don't you have a seat? I'd offer you a hot beverage but I don't know how to get one here."

Sheldon sat in the chair she just vacated without another thought. It was indicative of how stressed he was.

Penny knelt by his feet and stared up at him. "Thank you, Sheldon. I know how difficult that was for you. I really appreciate it."

"Please don't ask me to do that ever again."

"I won't," she said. "I promise."

Sheldon took a few breaths with his eyes closed. When he recovered, he looked at her with a pathetic expression, and in a small voice, he said, "I'd like to go home now."

Penny frowned. "Okay. Let's go home."

They didn't speak for the first half of the journey back to Pasadena. Curiosity burned in her mind; she wanted to find out what made Sheldon sad. But he didn't want to talk about it, so she didn't press the issue.

Then, Sheldon spoke up. "May I ask you a question?"

She glanced at him before returning her attention to the road. "Sure."

"What does it mean when someone says they need some time, to take a step back and reassess the situation?"

Oh no. A feeling of dread filled her gut. She could guess where this was going. "I guess it depends on the context," she said, stalling for time. "Who said that?"

Sheldon's shoulders seemed to slump lower. "Amy."

Shit. "What were you guys talking about?"

He hesitated before answering. "Our relationship."

Double-shit. Penny frowned at her friend's dejected tone. "I think that means you're on a break."

He seemed to consider this. "Are you and Leonard on a break?"

Penny sighed. "I don't know. Maybe."

"May I ask what happened?"

She didn't answer for a long time, as the memory of freezing up invaded her mind, followed by the memory of Leonard's confused expression. She remembered the terror and shame that filled her as she ran away from the altar, back to the bridal suite where she locked herself in. She remembered cursing at herself as she blocked the door with a chair, cowering as she ignored all the knocks and pleas to talk.

"I left him at the altar," she whispered, shame filling her heart once again.

More silence followed. This time, she could almost feel Sheldon's judgment radiating toward her. It was like sitting next to a furnace, psychically speaking. She braved a glance toward him. He stared at the dashboard with a brooding expression.

"Say something," she begged.

He remained silent.

She tried again. "Are you mad at me?"

Sheldon tilted his head, and finally glanced her way. "I find myself in an interesting situation. I am angry with you, but logically I have no cause to be. I have always considered your relationship with Leonard as doomed from the start. So with this inevitable destruction, I should be glad that I was right. But I'm not. I'm angry."

Penny shrank in her seat. "I'm sorry."

"You shouldn't be. You haven't wronged me. You should apologize to Leonard, he's the wounded party."

"You're right. And I will."

Sheldon glared at her.

"I will!" she promised. "Eventually."

He relented, facing forward again. "Getting back to the point, I shouldn't be angry with you. But I am."

Tears obscured Penny's vision as Sheldon's disappointment broke her heart. It was almost as painful as breaking Leonard's.

Sheldon cocked his head again. "Interesting."

"What?"

"I believe I owe Beverly an apology. Freud had some ridiculous theories but he might have been right about a few things."

Penny furrowed her brow in confusion. "What?"

He turned in his seat to face her. "After some thought, I believe my anger towards you is a projection of my anger towards Amy. The manner in which our relationships 'broke,' for lack of a better term, is somewhat similar. Leonard and I were both looking forward to the next step in our relationships, and both of us were surprised with rejection instead."

She wanted to crawl further into her seat. "Sorry," she whispered.

"Don't be," he said, waving a dismissive hand. "Now that I understand, I can point my anger toward the right person."

"So...you're not mad at me?"

"No. Furthermore, I applaud your decision. Your relationship was doomed from the start, as I've told you before. Better to end it before marriage, than to go through a bitter divorce."

She felt a little better knowing Sheldon supported her, but she was still ashamed. "I'm not happy about it right now, to be honest. I feel pretty shitty about it."

"I think Leonard feels worse," he pointed out needlessly.

"Thanks," she growled.

"You're welcome."

Penny bit back a sigh and concentrated on the road.

"Oh, that was sarcasm, wasn't it?"

She nodded.

It didn't hit her until they were walking toward their respective apartments.

"Next step?" she blurted.

Sheldon turned to face her. "Pardon?"

"What do you mean, you were ready to take the next step with Amy?"

"Oh, that." He turned back to his door, unlocking it as he spoke. "I was going to propose marriage."

She stared at his departing form, her mouth agape as he bid her good night.