And so concludes 'Daily Occurrences'.

It's taken me over 290,000 words to get this story out of my system but I now feel that I've explored what I needed to my own satisfaction. I miss the fun exhibited in the first two seasons of The Big Bang Theory and I wanted to show that it is compatible with romantic exploration and character development. I feel that all the characters deserve so much more than they've been getting and I tried very hard to make them shine, to do them justice.

This is the longest fiction I've ever written and I thank you all for taking the time to read and comment. In particular I'd like to thank TheGreebo who not only wrote my Summary (because my attempt sucked so horribly!) but also set me straight in treating this story with respect. You gave me the courage to continue when things looked grim in the early days.

I hope you enjoyed my indulgence. Thank you again for reading. *Lynn

Reference to 'The Agreement Dissection'; 'Pilot'

This chapter contains 'Mature' sexual content.

xTBBTx

"Thank you for bringing me along," Amy gushed as Sheldon held the store's door open for her to exit.

"You drove," he replied.

"Your literalisms are amusing."

"I'm trying to widen my humor repertoire," he said as they walked down the sidewalk. "There are times when I converse with Penny that I find myself at a loss." The neurobiologist nodded.

"She's good for you." Amy cocked her head. "Actually she's good for the both of us. It's funny that two overachievers could miss what's really important in life. So much for smarts."

Sheldon regarded his friend. "I take it relations between Raj and you are progressing?"

"Sheldon, if I'd known what coitus felt like earlier I would have pinned you to the couch the first time we snuggled." She wiggled her eyebrows as his cheeks colored and eyes widened.

"So much for a 'relationship of the mind'," he said drolly.

"Oh I still respect you for that—among other things."

"Amy Farrah Fowler," he tsked.

"Penny and I agree you have a cute tush." She bumped her friend's elbow as she could feel his unease. "And you think all we talk about are shoes."

"Cigars, alcohol, ravaging men with your eyes—"

"You forgot abundance of friends, a boyfriend, a social life." A pause as they waited at the lights. "This wasn't supposed to happen to me."

"What do you mean?

"I'm Amy Farrah Fowler," she said with a wry smirk. "Brainy but friendless. Frumpy and undesirable."

"You're not undesirable," the physicist said with a frown. "I desire you as a friend and Raj, even more so." They crossed the street.

"As we had coitus I kept having to remind myself that it was actually happening."

A little smile came to Sheldon's face. "You're better than me. I wasn't thinking at all."

"How did you feel afterwards?"

"Elated. Relieved. Of course I had to shower immediately after but I'm happy to say I didn't scrub myself raw." His eyes rolled to his friend. "I really have to thank you."

"No need."

"If there's anything I can do for you, you need only ask," he said seriously.

"Friendship is about more than reciprocity, Sheldon. It's mutually giving to each other without expectation of return. I want you to be happy and if my actions can contribute to that happiness I'm more than willing to oblige."

They continued walking in comfortable silence.

It was as they were passing Macy's that she felt his hand slip into hers.

"You're a treasure, Amy Farrah Fowler," he said softly.

xTBBTxMaturexTBBTx

Sheldon was in the middle of watching television when the door opened and Penny entered.

"Hey Sheldon," she said as she made her way to the back of the couch so she could plant a kiss on his head. "Next Generation?"

He rolled his eyes. "Deep Space Nine, Penny. The uniforms should be a dead giveaway since their color insignias of red, blue and gold are worn on the shoulders whereas it's on the upper body on the ones worn on Next Generation."

"Be happy I know who Spock is."

"Duly noted," Sheldon replied as he watched her cross over to the kitchen for a bottled water. He also noted that she wore no underwear under her green shorts and her hair was slightly curled at the ends as it dried after her shower.

"So, what are we going to do this afternoon?" Penny asked as she sat down in her spot.

"As Leonard's off at Leslie's until Sunday we have the apartment to ourselves," grinned her boyfriend.

"Give you any ideas?" she asked coyly.

"Well we can watch what we want without recourse as the Roommate Agreement stipulates television usage must be booked for exclusive personal use at the weekly meeting." He noticed her look and muted the tv. "What?"

"Sheldon, what do you think Leslie and Leonard are doing right now?"

He thought for a moment. "Given the time of day I'd imagine not a lot as it's only been an hour since lunch."

"I don't think they're going swimming," Penny smirked. "Although you're right in guessing something physical."

Sheldon pursed his lips. "Conjecture. You have no way of knowing what they're doing."

"Not true," she said softly as she turned to face him. "You see it's all about dark matter."

"Oh really?" he said with a twitchy smile. "Do tell."

"Well I'm not that good on the science since that's your department but from what I understand dark matter is something that can't be felt"—here she put a hand to Sheldon's cheek—"or tasted"—she leaned in and slowly pressed her lips to his. She smiled as he closed his eyes and swallowed. "It can't be smelled or heard. And yet…." Sheldon was absolutely still.

"And yet?" he whispered.

"The attraction is so strong. So undeniable." Her mouth returned to his and he kissed her softly. "And you say I don't listen to you when you gibber-jabber about sciencey stuff," she smirked.

"I'll have to amend Professor Zwicky's formula because there's no doubt I see you." Sheldon rubbed a strand of Penny's hair with his fingers. "I feel you and smell you and taste you."

"You're sure it's not a bad case of, what did you call it, gravitational lensing?"

A smile crossed his face but it was his determined gaze that caught her breath. She knew that look and it was something she loved to see in her lover's eyes—Want.

"There's something I have to show you," he said softly as he got up.

"Oh?" Penny said as she joined him.

"It's in my room," he said as she backed him into the hallway. "Let me get—"

"Perfect," she purred before she pinned Sheldon against the wall. Her hands moved from his shoulders to either side of his neck and she pulled him towards her waiting mouth. Save their breaths and the smacking of lips all was silent in the apartment. There was nothing to distract Penny from the warmth under her fingers as his body responded to her kiss. Nothing to hide the bulge in his pants that pressed against her hip.

Sheldon felt her rubbing against him and in that moment decided to assert himself and angled his hips until he slid from under her weight. Smiling softly, Penny grabbed both of his hands and led him around the corner. Again she stepped into his personal space and let his breath come down from above as she raised her head to feel his lips on hers.

"Penny," he said between kisses. "We're at my room."

"Mmhm."

"No one can come in my room."

He could feel Penny's Cheshire smile against his lips. "Wanna bet?"

Sheldon found the handle and opened the door.

Penny's mouth was fused to his as she seemingly pushed him to a sitting position on the bed. Their mouths opened and lips clambered over each other until Penny broke the kiss and smiled. She stood up and took off her shirt. Her breasts were free and beautiful and she reveled in Sheldon's stare since she knew he hadn't missed a moment: not her nipples hardening after the fabric of her shirt rubbed against them; not her hands as they swept her hair up and out of the way so he could see her breasts unimpeded.

She took a moment to rub his chest before linking her hands behind his head; with a tug Penny forced his mouth to her lips only to stop before kissing him. At once they were still: only their breath caressed as green eyes met blue.

Sheldon's stomach tightened as Penny unclasped his belt; his breath hitched as his pants were unbuttoned and the zipper drawn. He closed his eyes and inhaled sharply while she snuck inside and rubbed against him.

She removed herself and stood, hooking her thumbs into her shorts and sliding them down until gravity took over. Penny grinned as she stepped into Sheldon and pressed him into the bed as their lips met. He wrapped an arm around her waist and hauled the two of them further up the mattress. As soon as he settled Penny put a hand on either side of his pants, Sheldon raising his hips as she pulled. He settled his bare buttocks on the bed and reached out for her. At once she crashed against him and found his mouth. Sheldon's hand wove itself through her hair and in a swift motion turned their bodies so she lay beneath him. Putting his weight on one elbow he used his other hand to free his legs from his pants and underwear even as he kicked off his shoes. Penny took this moment of distraction to kiss her way to the crook of his neck. He groaned as she began to suck; his nostrils taking in the lingering hints of vanilla scented oil as his cheek brushed the side of her face.

Sheldon was hot and mentally cursed himself for not removing his shirts but he sure wasn't going to stop Penny so he could strip. Besides it left him with less flesh to hold against her and it was as if his body worked to compensate. His palm tingled in its heat as he pressed on her shoulder blade in an attempt to bring her closer to him. In response Penny reared her head and moved her mouth to his throat and kissed and sucked. Sheldon's head rocked from side to side until he could stand it no longer and brought his lips to hers.

A shiver wound its way down Penny's spine and she wanted to return the favor. Her hand went to her lover's side and she gently dragged her nails across the hip towards his very erect member.

"Penny wait," Sheldon gasped.

"Oh God, Sheldon, you're not bailing on me," she moaned.

"Hardly. The condom's in my nightstand." He leaned away and Penny could hear the drawer open. She knew it was a heck of a time to put her hand under his shirt and rub her slickened palm over his nipple but she couldn't help it. Penny chuckled as she heard him suck in a breath; his search in the drawer sounded more frantic until his hand returned to his chest with a line of condoms.

"Want me to put it on?" asked Penny.

"Not unless you want this to end prematurely," he hissed as he ripped along the perforation and took out the condom, letting the rest drop to the floor. He pinched the end and rolled the rubber down his shaft. To Penny's surprise he again went for his nightstand.

"What are you doing?"

"The lubricant is—"

"Trust me you don't need it."

Her answer had the very effect she wanted as he ended his pause by crushing his lips to her breast. He planted kisses on either side before taking up the nipple.

"Sheldon," Penny groaned.

Her legs opened; she had him quick and dirty and there was no way she'd let the opportunity pass. She grabbed his hair and pulled. With a grunt the physicist arched his neck.

"Take. Me. Now," the Nebraskan ordered.

She let out a gasp of surprise as Sheldon scooped her legs onto his shoulders.

"This should work," he said before he plunged his length into her. With each thrust he drove up and in causing Penny to groan repeatedly.

"Don't stop!" she almost shrieked as he freed one of his arms to snatch the pillow from under her head and rammed it under her lower back.

Now that she was better supported it took the pressure off his arms so he could concentrate on maintaining the proper angle to stimulate her vaginal wall. Once he understood the objectives it was merely a matter of calculating the proper angles to achieve them. He didn't anticipate how quickly the whole process was tiring him, however. It was dreadfully obvious he had to pick up Wii Fit if he was to continue his coital activities. There was, after all, so much to try.

A growl slipped between his lips as he continued his strokes. He felt like, well he didn't know what, really. Carnal. Possessive. His thoughts were on determining the fundamental resonance of the mattress so as to calculate the optimal pace of their rhythmic bounces. Driving the oscillator as they said in the physics world.

Fucking her into next week, in English.

"Oh God! Oh God!" Penny gasped as her hands dug into the blankets.

Her eyes were closed and Sheldon realized he'd give anything to see them. He glanced at her heaving chest, her breasts coiled like springs moving in accordance with their resilience and mass.

"Penny," he hissed.

"Almost!"

Sheldon desperately grasped at the first thing that came to mind and began calculating a pendulum's period of oscillation. The period of swing of a simple gravity pendulum depended on its length, the local strength of gravity and to a small extent on the maximum angle that the pendulum swung away from vertical. For instance when Penny was topless above him on her hands and knees and began grinding their pelvises her breasts began to sway as a result of her motions, their resonances determined primarily by the length they extended from her chest which he estimated at—Drat!—When surfaces in contact move relative to each other, the friction between the two surfaces converted kinetic energy into heat. Friction was not itself a fundamental force but arose from fundamental electromagnetic forces between the charged particles constituting the two contacting surfaces like in the case of fluid friction where two solid surfaces were separated by a fluid such as Penny's wet, dripping pus—

"Penny!"

"Oh God! Oh God! Oh Go—" She let out a grunt and Sheldon could feel the contractions around his penis before he was slammed by his own release.

After riding the moment he sat back and did his best to catch his breath. Penny slid her legs off his shoulders and took in the sight of her lover on his knees before her. Vulnerable. Powerful. Hers.

"Come here," she said and he slid beside her and she felt his arms around her and she reveled in his touch. "I think you're getting the hang of this," she said with a little laugh.

"Mmhm," he said tiredly.

"I'll give you a hand with the room but if you say we have to do your shelves because of flying skin particles or whatever you're on your own."

Silence.

Penny listened to Sheldon's breaths and smiled to herself. He'd probably freak over the germs when he woke up but that was later and this was now.

This was perfect.

xTBBTx

Pop Pop Pop Pop

"They're going by the cabin," Howard said as he peeked through the window.

"Good," Leonard said as he raised his goggles to his forehead. "I don't know how much longer I can outrun those kids."

"Tell me about it," Raj said as he reloaded his gun. "I thought they were supposed to be getting fatter from inactivity?"

"Not like us when we were young," said Leonard. Sheldon looked at him incredulously.

"We were in school, at our computers or working on experiments. Just exactly when were we athletic?"

"Well I don't know about you but I got a lot of cardio running from bullies," replied the experimental physicist.

"There's that," Sheldon conceded as the other two concurred.

Leonard cleared his throat. "Hey Howard I've got a question for you."

"Shoot."

"When did you know it was right to propose to Bernadette?"

All eyes were on Leonard.

"Whoa buddy, are you saying you want to marry Leslie?" Howard sputtered. "Isn't this a little soon?"

"It's not too soon if it's meant to be," countered Raj with a frown.

"I don't mean right now," Leonard assured the group. "It's just that…. When I told Penny I loved her I thought I meant it." He shook his head. "I did mean it but it wasn't like this. It's like I didn't know what love really was. With Leslie it's different. From the moment she said she loved me it just seemed—right."

"Who knew Leslie had a heart under all that snarkiness?" quipped the engineer.

"You'd be surprised," Sheldon said evenly. Now everyone stared incredulously at the lanky man. "Merely an observation." He continued to adjust his gun sight.

Raj leaned against the wall. "Amy and I are blessed." He felt Sheldon's eyes. "Don't worry we're taking things day by day." A little smile came to his face. "But I know I've stopped looking. My parents like her. I like her. And she likes me too. No hiding my Star Trek uniforms or my romance novels. It's amazing."

"It is," Howard agreed. "And you're right. The moment I met Bernie I stopped looking. She was the one. Even though we were having some rocky times I knew she couldn't say no." He looked to Sheldon. "What about you?" The physicist shrugged.

"Penny and I have altered our paradigm. Marriage is the logical progression."

"Just what the world needs: a flock of little Shelly Coopers," grinned Leonard.

"Don't forget our progeny will share in Penny's genetic code," Sheldon replied. He looked at his roommate with a twinkle in his eyes. "Our babies will be smart and beautiful."

xTBBTx

"I can't believe we're at the end of the year already," gushed Penny as she dumped the bag of microwave popcorn into the bowl. "I know, I know, relativity."

"That and time flies when you're having fun," Sheldon replied while typing away on his laptop.

"Makes one wonder what other faster than light experiences Sheldon's provided," added Leslie. Sheldon turned to the stuffed chair to glare at the optical physicist who smirked in return.

Leonard paused in laying out crackers on a plate. "Anyways," he said. "I'm sure Sheldon's working knowledge of forces comes in handy. I know I've found it indispensible."

"Yes, but you're experimental. Sheldon's theoretical," his girlfriend pointed out.

"Meaning that you work on trial and error while I actually put thought into it," snapped Sheldon. He finished and saved his work.

Leslie took a sip of wine. "Now if you could actually do that with your research you'd be ahead of the game."

"At least my research is original," sniffed the lanky man. "I'm surprised you haven't been retesting Newton's Law of Universal Gravity."

"All objects attract each other with a force of gravitational attraction—kind of like how your brain attracts wrong answers or as you call them, working theories," Leslie said sweetly.

"So much for Sheldon winning the Nobel Peace Prize," Penny quipped to Leonard as she set the glasses on the counter.

"They may have better luck with the Middle East crisis first," her ex-boyfriend replied as Leslie and Sheldon continued to snip and snap at each other.

"Maybe we should let Gablehauser decide," Leslie said testily.

"The man hasn't published in years. Good luck on his being able to understand the nuances of my work," said Sheldon.

"I don't know, Sheldon, your work seems straightforward to me: one fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish."

"And that's the end of round seven," Leonard said with a clap of the hands. "Maybe we should take a break." He looked at Penny and indicated the door with his head.

"Sheldon let's go to my apartment for a bit," Penny said brightly.

"We're not finished setting up," he responded although he stood. "Everyone will be here in half an hour."

"It's ok," the waitress said as she took her boyfriend's hand and led him away.

"If Leslie poisons me I'm blaming you," he said as they ventured across the hall into Penny's apartment.

She rolled her eyes as she sat down on the couch. Sheldon turned off the lights and went to join her. Both sat back to look at her starry ceiling.

"What a year," Penny sighed. She turned her head and smiled. "Thank you."

"The feeling's mutual," Sheldon said evenly. "Although the year isn't over for another four hours and nineteen minutes and I am sharing a room with Leslie Winkle so perhaps I'm being premature."

"Immature is more like it," Penny laughed.

Sheldon cocked his head. "You know it just occurred to me that it's the last Monday of the month. Time for a physics lesson."

"Now?"

"It is the last Monday of the month."

"Can't we take a break for the holidays?"

He tugged on her arm. "Penny as we speak physics is happening all around us. Don't you want to know how and why?"

Penny snuggled against him. "Actually, since we're on the verge of a new year talk to me about it."

"Alright," he said as he rubbed her arm with his thumb. "The practice of celebrating the New Year stems back to Babylonian times when they celebrated the first new moon following the vernal equinox—the day in late March with an equal amount of sunlight and darkness.

"Julius Caesar instituted January first as the first day of the year, partly to honor the month's namesake: Janus, the Roman god of beginnings, whose two faces allowed him to look back into the past and forward into the future. Romans celebrated by offering sacrifices to Janus, exchanging gifts with one another, decorating their homes with laurel branches and attending raucous parties."

"Been to a few of those," Penny chuckled.

Sheldon continued. "Our New Year occurs on January first as determined by the Gregorian or Western calendar which was established by Pope Gregory on February twenty fourth fifteen eighty two. As you know there are three hundred and sixty five days to a year with a bissextile or Leap Year occurring in years that are integer multiples of four. Each day consists of twenty four hours which is the length of time it takes for the earth to complete a revolution from the point of view of the sun and once every twenty three hours fifty six minutes and four seconds from the point of view of the stars."

"Why does the earth spin?" asked Penny as her finger traced the logo of his Superman t-shirt.

"The Earth formed out of a collapsed nebula. As the nebula collapsed it began rotating, which may seem odd, but actually not rotating is far stranger than rotating. The Earth's rotation comes from the initial tendency to rotate that was imparted on it when it formed, and there is nothing—other than the tidal forces of the Moon, which are weak—to slow it down."

"That's crazy."

"A nebula is quite fascinating. It's an interstellar cloud of dust, hydrogen, helium and other ionized gases where stars form such as the Eagle Nebula."

"How?"

"In these regions the formations of gas, dust and other materials 'clump' together to form larger masses, which attract further matter and eventually will become massive enough to form stars. The remaining materials are then believed to form planets and other planetary system objects."

Penny looked up at her starry ceiling. "As we're talking stars and planets are being born."

"Yes."

"Amazing." Sheldon kissed her lightly on the head.

"Stars range in size from neutron stars, which vary anywhere from twenty to forty kilometers in diameter to supergiants like Betelgeuse in the Orion constellation which has a diameter approximately six hundred and fifty times larger than the Sun."

"Is it on the ceiling?"

"No. It's below Taurus so would be where Amy's forehead is on the painting."

"Ah."

"Research suggests that many stars are part of a binary star system consisting of two stars orbiting around their common center of mass."

"Are there any in this neck of the woods?"

"Alpha Centauri. It's located in the constellation of Centaurus which is in the kitchen between the refrigerator and the table."

"I've got to see this," Penny said as she got off the couch and walked to the spot. "Come show me." Sheldon followed and pointed out two glow-in-the-dark stars of differing sizes overlapping each other.

"The big one is Alpha Centauri A and the other is Alpha Centauri B."

"And there they are." She stood on her toes and kissed his nose. "You are amazing."

"Turn on the light while I get your whiteboard," he replied excitedly.

"Lesson time," Penny grinned as she clicked on the light and settled on the couch.

Sheldon drew two circles beside each other.

"The term double star may be used synonymously with binary star, but more generally, a double star may be either a binary star or an optical double star which consists of two stars with no physical connection but which appear close together in the sky as seen from the Earth. Think of them as friends," he said as he drew stick bodies onto the circles and added eyes and smiley mouths. "They're always seen together but there's no physical intimacy."

"Double stars are friends. Got it."

He drew two more circles beneath his figures.

"True binary stars are often detected optically. The brighter star is called the primary and the other is its companion."

"Sounds serious," Penny chuckled.

Sheldon nodded. "Very. Binary stars are important in astrophysics because calculations of their orbits allow the masses of their component stars to be directly determined, which in turn allows other stellar parameters, such as radius and density, to be indirectly estimated."

"Which also means…."

He made two more stick figures only these were holding hands.

"Because they're always touching each other it's easy for others to see that they're together and surmise what else they do as a couple like go out to the movies or dine."

"Mind blowing sex." Penny wiggled her eyebrows.

"There's that," Sheldon said as he put the cap back on the marker and set it on the ledge before returning to the couch. "If components in binary star systems are close enough they can gravitationally distort their mutual outer stellar atmospheres. In some cases, these close binary systems can exchange mass, which may bring their evolution to stages that single stars cannot attain."

"There you go with all that romantic talk again." Penny leaned over and planted a kiss on his lips. "The transformative power of love."

"Physics is the language of the universe," Sheldon smirked.

"You make it seem so easy."

"It's logical. For instance it's also possible for widely separated binaries to lose gravitational contact with each other during their lifetime. The components will then move on to evolve as single stars."

"That's terrible," Penny said sadly.

"Indeed. But there are pairs where the two stars are of equal brightness. In this way they're like identically cut allotropes of carbon, where carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic structure." Penny shook her head.

"Shooting blanks sweetie."

"Perhaps it's best if I give you an example."

He reached into his pocket and Penny's breath hitched as he produced a white box. Her eyes found his.

"I doubt I'm doing this correctly," Sheldon said quietly. "Of course it's not like I'd ever thought I'd be doing this at all."

He opened the box and Penny saw a ring with two equally-sized diamonds twisted together in a golden swirl.

"Given our relatively short period of time since we altered our paradigm protocol suggested a token of affection akin to a 'promise ring'. After much thought I came to the conclusion that a 'promise' alone doesn't encompass everything I feel." His blue eyes were steadfast. "I need you to understand that I am most serious when I say I love you, Penelope."

"I love you too, Sheldon," she whispered.

"You have your education to complete so this ring is in no way meant to hurry you along. If anything it's meant to provide you a point of consistency. Your own 0,0,0,0 coordinate on the Cartesian system."

"My own spot."

"Is at my side," he said simply.

Penny nodded and held out her hand. Sheldon let out a breath and slid the ring onto her finger.

Gently their lips met.

"I love you Moonpie," she whispered, her eyes glistening.

"Always," he replied before returning his mouth to hers.

XxX

Inside apartment 4A the gang was sitting comfortably around the coffee table munching on snacks.

"I always get so anxious waiting for the ball to drop," gushed Bernadette.

Howard leaned back against his wife's knees. "Now you're starting to sound like Leonard," he said with a smirk. In return the curly haired physicist glared.

"And you're telling me you haven't had pieces of anatomy shift out of position?" he asked. The engineer shrugged.

"I've dislocated a shoulder and sprained some fingers. Never lost track of a testicle."

"Actually it isn't uncommon for men to experience testicular retraction into the inguinal region," said Amy. "Having extra strong cremasters means your body's more sensitive to stimulation such as cold, ejaculation and a response to fear."

"Or in Leonard's case a size ten shoe." Raj glanced at the apartment door before taking a small sip of wine. What's taking so long? He felt a hand on his shoulder and he looked up to see his girlfriend flash a comforting smile.

"Sometimes being able to fit in one's own cello case is advantageous," Leonard said with a bit of a flush.

"Too bad you don't fit now," Leslie smirked.

Leonard leaned his head onto her knees and made big brown eyes. "You'd cram me in there?"

"Like Amy said: retraction occurs from fear," grinned Howard. "I'm sure Leslie could put the fear of God into you so that your cremasters sucked up the rest of you like a Dyson vacuum."

"That's ridiculous. I'm not afraid of Leslie," scoffed Leonard, who suddenly stiffened as he felt her hand at the back of his neck. Howard made a sucking sound.

"And we have liftoff!" he quipped.

"Be nice, Howard," chided Bernadette. "Or I'll borrow that cello case."

"Given your short stature and slight build you should have ample shoulder room," Amy said helpfully.

"Madam, if there's anything I'm good at it's fitting into tight spac—" A blushing Bernadette slapped a hand over his mouth

The sounds of a door closing in the hallway silenced the group. A moment and then the apartment door opened and Penny came into the room followed by Sheldon. There's a pause and then she held out her hand to show off her ring. Bernadette, Amy and Raj squealed in delight and popped off the couch to join her.

"Let me see," sniffed Raj as he took Penny's hand and kissed it before studying the ring. "Just beautiful."

"Congratulations," Howard said to Sheldon.

"Congratulations Sheldon," beamed Leonard as he shook his roommate's hand.

"Thank you, Leonard, Howard," was his even reply although it was evident that he was pleased.

"So when's the lucky day so I can book time in the lab?" asked Leslie with a little smile.

"Not until Penny finishes with her schooling." A pause. "However, as it will be a group social outing your attendance is non-optional," Sheldon added. The two physicists briefly locked eyes before Leslie made room for Amy and Bernadette.

"Congratulations Sheldon," Bernadette squeaked as both she and Amy gave him a hug.

Amy nodded. "You're the luckiest person on the planet to have landed such a scintillating beauty." She clapped Sheldon on the arm. "We'll all live vicariously through you."

"We need to celebrate," Raj said as he wiped his eyes with a tissue.

"Game time!" Amy said cheerily. "Girls against boys."

"Oh I don't think so," Sheldon replied with a frown. "If anything it should be couples pairing together."

"You're just worried we'll kick your hinnie," Bernadette grinned.

"No, he's sure you'll kick our hinnies," Leonard chuckled.

"Don't take it too badly sweetie," Penny said as she slipped her arms around Sheldon's waist. "It's just putting you guys in your place. You should be used to it."

Blue eyes met green.

"Bring it, woman," he said crisply.

XxX

"Come on you little wildebeest bend it like Beckham," ordered Amy.

"I'm trying," gasped Bernadette as she was in the middle of shimmying her body under the limbo stick. "But the girls aren't cooperating."

"I never thought I'd see a day when I'd curse an ample bosom," the neurobiologist sighed. She looked to Penny and smiled. "Not everyone can have proportionate cupcakes like you."

"Thanks," Penny murmured with a blush before taking a sip of her juice.

XxX

"Queen Elizabeth!" said Amy.

"Princess Diana!" piped in Bernadette.

Penny shook her head and made a book reading gesture.

"Fairytale?" guessed the neurobiologist. The waitress nodded emphatically.

"Cinderella!" Leslie said excitedly.

"Yes!" clapped Penny.

"Time: nine seconds," Leonard said as he reset his watch.

"Beat that sweetie." Penny smiled at Sheldon as he made his way to the front.

"Alright," said the lanky physicist. "I've got a person in mind."

Amy took Leonard's watch. "And three, two, one—go!"

"Spock," Leonard, Howard and Raj said at once.

"One second," Amy reported.

"Muah-ha-ha," Sheldon chuckled as he looked to Penny.

XxX

Howard, Sheldon, Leslie and Raj sat on their knees around the coffee table with individual mixing bowls in front of them.

"The object of the game is to eat the cherry without touching it with your hands," said Leonard as he dropped a maraschino cherry in each bowl.

"I'm a natural at that," quipped Howard. Sheldon rolled his eyes.

"Sounds simple enough," Leslie replied as she tied her hair with a scrunchie.

Leonard, Bernadette, Penny and Amy all looked at each other with big grins.

"Just one thing," Penny said sweetly before each pulled out a can of whipped cream and filled the bowls of their significant others.

Sheldon looked betrayed. "My shirt."

"Just a second," Penny replied as she tied a towel around his neck. She pulled the towel taut and tucked the sides into his hands before kissing him on top of the head. "Make me proud."

"Explain to me why it's me again?" Leslie asked.

"Lactose intolerant," Leonard said with a smile. "Who knew flatulence could work to my benefit?"

"On the count of three," said Amy. The contestants readied themselves as the observers readied their camera phones. "One, two, three!"

Four faces dove into the bowls. Seconds ticked by until Leslie sat up and spit the cherry pit in the air.

"Leslie wins!" Leonard said excitedly as he handed her a towel. The rest of the guys sat up, their faces full of cream.

"I can't believe I lost," sighed Howard. "It's so much easier doing this in the bedroom."

Bernadette shoved his face into the bowl.

XxX

Amy pulled out another card.

"Okay Sheldon, what fits neatly between your breasts, works best when tugged, gets longer as it's pulled and inserts neatly into a hole?"

"A seatbelt," replied the physicist.

"What starts with a C and ends with a T, is hairy, oval, delicious and contains thin, whitish liquid?"

"A coconut."

"What goes in hard and pink then comes out soft and sticky?"

"Bubblegum."

"You stick your poles inside me. You tie me down to get me up. I get wet before you do. What am I?"

"A tent."

"You know it dawns on me why Sheldon's been a virgin for thirty years," grinned Leonard.

"It just took Penny to speak his language is all," replied Howard. "Using her knowledge of G-String Theory she'll use Sheldon's supercollider to collapse her wavefunction in order to achieve superpositioned eigenstates."

"Really Howard?" Sheldon said albeit with color on his cheeks.

"Don't worry, sweetie. You can short circuit my shunt anytime," Penny grinned causing the engineer to laugh.

"Someone's been wooed by the exploits of Micro Farad," he said.

"'Ohm, ohm, give me mho'," Penny moaned aloud.

"This better not be counting against my time," scowled Sheldon.

XxX

As the television counted down the gang took up their champagne glasses.

"Happy New Year!" they all said aloud before touching glasses and singing 'Auld Lang Syne'.

"To the best friends I've ever had," Leonard said with emotion. "To Boldly Go."

The four men clinked glasses.

"I win!" squealed Penny. Sheldon gave her a questioning look. "I bet less than five minutes into the new year before a Star Trek quote is mentioned," she explained.

"I'm stealing your lunch money to make up the difference," Leslie murmured to her boyfriend.

XxX

The apartment was empty save for two couples who stood by the door.

"We're just over two hours in but I already know it's going to be a great year," Raj gushed as he helped Amy into her jacket.

"How can it not?" Penny grinned as she leaned against her fiancé—her fiancé! "I want to thank the both of you for everything you've done for Sheldon and me."

"Unnecessary, Penny. It's what besties do," replied Amy.

"You know you're going to be my Maid of Honor, right?"

"I know the perfect little Native American sweat lodge." A little smile passed over Amy's lips.

"Spoilers, Amy," Penny said diplomatically.

The couples stepped into the hall and said their goodnights.

Penny unlocked her apartment and went in. She ventured into the bedroom and stripped out of her clothes.

A few minutes later Sheldon entered the apartment carrying his pajamas, housecoat and slippers.

"I thought you were showering?" Penny asked.

"I was going to but then I realized we weren't under attack by water-soluble aliens," he replied as his fiancée traipsed naked into the living room. Sheldon set his apparel on the back of the couch.

"Should I even ask?"

"Under the Roommate Agreement the shower has an agreed upon occupancy of one unless we're invaded—"

"By water-soluble aliens. Right." Penny wrapped her arms around his waist. "Why Dr. Cooper, are you telling me you want to share my tub?"

"I realize it's only Monday but I was hoping you wouldn't mind if we treated it like a Date Night."

Penny rolled her eyes in mock thought. "Hmmm. Is this worth shirking protocol? Let me think."

"Protocol, shmotocol," Sheldon whispered before kissing her earlobe.

"Careful, I'm covered in germs," she giggled.

"Germs, shmerms." He kissed the crook of her neck, making her toes curl.

"This is perfect," she breathed. Sheldon straightened to look at her.

"I still haven't solved the universe," he said.

"You will," she replied.

Sheldon grinned before scooping Penny over his shoulder with a growl.

"Sheldon!"

"Penny, it's after two. Please observe the noise ordinance," he said drolly as he walked into the bedroom.

"Whackadoodle," Penny laughed as she closed the door behind them.

(black screen. end credits)

…

Wikipedia: Gregorian Calendar; Earth's Rotation; Nebula; Star; Binary Star; Stellar Classification; Diamond; Pendulum; Friction

The Physics of Sex: Sexual Rhythms

History com: New Year

Curious about Astronomy: Earth rotation

Yahoo! Answers: Dirty Minds Game Q & A

Thanks for reading!