FIC: Breathing Time Machine (Take You All For a Ride) [2/4?]
Title: Breathing Time Machine (Take You All For A Ride) [2/4?]
Author: Meg / juniperlane / betternovembers
Spoilers: Through BBT 3.05, FlashFoward 1.01
Rating/Warnings: NC-17 (swearing ahoy!)
Word Count: 1775
Disclaimer: TBBT, the concept of FlashFoward, and pretty much everything ever do not belong to me.
Notes: Happy EPIC MONDAY OF EPICNESS. Might as well join in on the SPlosion that's bound to happen today (thanks to d_sieya for that excellent term).
Previous parts: PART 1.
October 6, 2009 - 11:06:34 AM - Tuesday
"Penny? PENNY? Can you -- are you there? Are you ok?"
She breathes for what feels like the first time in days, but it hasn't even been five minutes since she woke up and looked outside, saw the fires, the accidents, tried to turn the television on only to see the emergency broadcast system (she didn't even know that still existed).
"Leonard! Thank god, are you ok? Are you all ok?" The connection is terrible, and it sounds like Leonard is running, and there's fire alarms in the background, and something is happening, but she can't tell and really, what the actual fuck is going on.
"I'm fine, Sheldon and Raj are with me, but we can't get to Howard's office. There's a chemical fire in one of the labs, and we can't get to Howard--" Leonard sounds completely frantic, the phone is muffled as he shouts instructions for Raj to double back and look for a fire extinguisher, then he's back, but only to say, "Penny, I have to-- just stay safe, I'll call again soon."
There are twenty other things she could be doing, she needs to call her family, see if they're ok, try and see what exactly just happened, because one minute she's having a dream about sexy times with Sheldon and the next she wakes up and it seems to be chaos and destruction everywhere. Maybe it's a sign she should never date Sheldon? She pushes that train of thought of her head, because it's an emergency, and actually, Sheldon's really the one she wishes she had here with her. He has duffel bags and binders with specific plans about what to do during this sort of thing. Does this even qualify as an apocalypse? Whatever, she's not about to go brave the streets and try and find canned peaches that they can live off of for three weeks if they have to, so instead she curls back up on her bed, and dials the number home.
October 8, 2009 - 9:12:04 PM - Thursday
They had canceled Halo night by a pretty easy unanimous decision. It's Leonard's turn to sit with Howard, and Sheldon has set up camp in his room with his whiteboards (she's not really sure if he's hiding from her or actually working, but either way, she's barely seen him over the last 48 hours), so that leaves her and Raj, and it's another pretty easy decision that leads to their DVDs and drinks night. She's pulled down the liquor bottles and set up the makeshift bar at her kitchen counter again, and they've already made it about halfway into the bottle of rum before Raj even picks out what movie to watch. They're both in their own little worlds, and Raj isn't saying much, although he is saying please and thank you every time she goes to make another strong Captain and Coke and she just starts taking his empty glass with her.
He's got the DVD in the player, and she can't help but smile a little when the menus for Across the Universe start. No matter what the past couple of days have been like, with the accidents and the flashes, and Howard, at least there's the Beatles and a romantic movie to watch at the end of the day. She leans against Raj's shoulder a little when he presses play, and after he puts the remote down on the arm of her sofa, he hesitantly takes her left hand in his right.
It's all going to be alright. It has to be.
December 19, 2009 - 12:35:32 AM - Saturday
The annual Caltech holiday party is pretty subdued, for obvious reasons. The plaque and fountain for those lost in the fire the day of the flash forwards was a nice touch though, or at least Penny thought so. Sheldon found it a waste of university resources, but she had managed to shush him before he could say anything to Gablehouser's replacement. Howard walking in under his own power (even if he was leaning on Raj pretty heavily) had gotten a pretty heavy round of applause, and had managed to pick up the mood of the place fairly decently. After that, it was pretty much a mindless few hours of standing around with the boys, and a few quick bouts of mingling that mostly just resulted in awkward pauses and people peering at Sheldon like they had to figure him out all over again.
Now that they're back in Penny's apartment, just the two of them, Sheldon has (thank the lord above for small miracles) taken off his plaid blazer, leaving him in his simple white dress shirt and tie, which he is currently in the middle of yanking at the knot with some frustration. She catches him out of the corner of her eye, and can't quite hide the smile. "Sweetie, let me take care of that for you."
He sighs, but acquiesces and his hands drop to his sides. This thing between them is still a little weird, brand new, and Sheldon is still rough around the edges in terms of how much he likes to be touched. She takes him in as she crosses back across the apartment to help him, tie askew, sleeves rolled up just below his elbows, hair a little mussed. When she takes his tie in her hands, she doesn't loosen it right away, but instead she straightens it, and uses it to pull his head down to where she can touch her lips to his in a soft kiss. He doesn't protest, and she can feel his lips exerting the tiniest amount of force back against hers. She lets the moment play out, feeling the warmth of his chest against her fingers, but she doesn't push him either. So it's a bit of a surprise when his hand reaches up, finds a place at her jaw and tilts her head, just so, and then Sheldon's lips part against hers and then, this is it, here is their future for the first time. She's not sure how much of it is instinct and how much of it he knows from the flash forward, but it doesn't really matter, she supposes, not in the long run. They'll get there eventually, inevitably.
She's got one hand clutching his tie, and she's impressing herself with her ability to resist using the free one to start pulling his tucked shirt out of his pants, or really, any number of inappropriate things she could be doing right now. She's letting Sheldon set the pace. Well, mostly.
If her hand manages to tug just enough shirt loose so she can rest her hand directly on his back, well, she can't be blamed for that.
October 13, 2009 - 6:03:54 PM - Tuesday
"OK, Sheldon, I've given you a week to wrap your beautiful mind around what you saw, but seriously, we have to talk about it. You can't avoid me forever. If nothing else we're going to be doing it by April."
This is probably not the approach she should be taking, now that she thinks about it.
The absolute silence coming from the other side of Sheldon's bedroom door agrees. Yep, worst plan ever.
October 15, 2009 - 10:05:45 PM - Thursday
Raj follows her out of the boys apartment, and before she manages to open her apartment door, taps her on the shoulder and makes the universal gesture for tossing one back.
"Sure Raj. Come in."
She gets them both a beer from the fridge, and lets him drink.
"So you and Sheldon, huh?"
Damn him.
"So you and Howard, huh?"
He smiles, and she can't help but laugh. What a pair they make.
"Touché, Penny. Touché."
December 19, 2009 - 12:55:41 AM - Saturday
Sheldon's insisted that if he's spending the night, that he's at least going to go back and get his Friday night pajamas, even if it now technically it is Saturday. It would be pointless to fight him over it, so she just kisses him on the cheek, and tells him she'll go get in bed, just to lock the door after himself when he gets back. Any other guy, they'd read that as a sign, but it's kind of nice knowing that she's probably just going to cuddle with him, if he can actually even manage that.
Penny's pretty impressed when he's back under ten minutes. He definitely gave up the nighttime shower to come back over, and when he crawls into bed but sort of awkwardly pauses, like he's not sure where to go or if he's suppose to hold her, she leans in and kisses him again and they both taste like toothpaste, although his is mint and hers is cinnamon. After that he settles on his back, and lets her put her head on his shoulder, figures out where his arm is suppose to go. He's in the full button-down set, of course, but she worms her fingers in between buttons and rests them above his heartbeat.
"Penny?"
"Yeah, Sheldon?"
"This is much more comfortable than I would have expected."
"I knew you could hack it." She presses her lips just under his jaw, then under his left ear, and she feels his chest suck in a deep breathe of air, and it hits her -- the flash, it's one of his spots. The ones she can use to turn him boneless and pliant.
"Sheldon?"
"Yes, Penny."
"If you could change the future... our future, would you?"
"There have been unsubstantiated rumors that that is indeed possible now."
"Sheldon, I didn't ask you if-- I don't know if it's possible or not. If it is possible, would you do it?"
"We change the future every day, Penny. I can't anticipate every consequence of the actions I take each day. But you wish to determine if I would change a hypothetical future in which we are together, or perhaps you are worrying if I am only here right now because of the fact I have seen this future for myself, and predict it to be a self-fulfilling prophecy?"
She starts to back-pedal, she didn't it mean it like that. The way he says it she sounds like doubts everything they're basing this on.
"I wouldn't change it, Penny. I won't." His tone is definitive, pretty much this conversation has no more value to me written all over it, but his hand comes up and takes hers, holds it to his chest, and she's pretty sure this is the moment she falls in love with him.
Author: Meg / juniperlane / betternovembers
Spoilers: Through BBT 3.05, FlashFoward 1.01
Rating/Warnings: NC-17 (swearing ahoy!)
Word Count: 1775
Disclaimer: TBBT, the concept of FlashFoward, and pretty much everything ever do not belong to me.
Notes: Happy EPIC MONDAY OF EPICNESS. Might as well join in on the SPlosion that's bound to happen today (thanks to d_sieya for that excellent term).
Previous parts: PART 1.
October 6, 2009 - 11:06:34 AM - Tuesday
"Penny? PENNY? Can you -- are you there? Are you ok?"
She breathes for what feels like the first time in days, but it hasn't even been five minutes since she woke up and looked outside, saw the fires, the accidents, tried to turn the television on only to see the emergency broadcast system (she didn't even know that still existed).
"Leonard! Thank god, are you ok? Are you all ok?" The connection is terrible, and it sounds like Leonard is running, and there's fire alarms in the background, and something is happening, but she can't tell and really, what the actual fuck is going on.
"I'm fine, Sheldon and Raj are with me, but we can't get to Howard's office. There's a chemical fire in one of the labs, and we can't get to Howard--" Leonard sounds completely frantic, the phone is muffled as he shouts instructions for Raj to double back and look for a fire extinguisher, then he's back, but only to say, "Penny, I have to-- just stay safe, I'll call again soon."
There are twenty other things she could be doing, she needs to call her family, see if they're ok, try and see what exactly just happened, because one minute she's having a dream about sexy times with Sheldon and the next she wakes up and it seems to be chaos and destruction everywhere. Maybe it's a sign she should never date Sheldon? She pushes that train of thought of her head, because it's an emergency, and actually, Sheldon's really the one she wishes she had here with her. He has duffel bags and binders with specific plans about what to do during this sort of thing. Does this even qualify as an apocalypse? Whatever, she's not about to go brave the streets and try and find canned peaches that they can live off of for three weeks if they have to, so instead she curls back up on her bed, and dials the number home.
October 8, 2009 - 9:12:04 PM - Thursday
They had canceled Halo night by a pretty easy unanimous decision. It's Leonard's turn to sit with Howard, and Sheldon has set up camp in his room with his whiteboards (she's not really sure if he's hiding from her or actually working, but either way, she's barely seen him over the last 48 hours), so that leaves her and Raj, and it's another pretty easy decision that leads to their DVDs and drinks night. She's pulled down the liquor bottles and set up the makeshift bar at her kitchen counter again, and they've already made it about halfway into the bottle of rum before Raj even picks out what movie to watch. They're both in their own little worlds, and Raj isn't saying much, although he is saying please and thank you every time she goes to make another strong Captain and Coke and she just starts taking his empty glass with her.
He's got the DVD in the player, and she can't help but smile a little when the menus for Across the Universe start. No matter what the past couple of days have been like, with the accidents and the flashes, and Howard, at least there's the Beatles and a romantic movie to watch at the end of the day. She leans against Raj's shoulder a little when he presses play, and after he puts the remote down on the arm of her sofa, he hesitantly takes her left hand in his right.
It's all going to be alright. It has to be.
December 19, 2009 - 12:35:32 AM - Saturday
The annual Caltech holiday party is pretty subdued, for obvious reasons. The plaque and fountain for those lost in the fire the day of the flash forwards was a nice touch though, or at least Penny thought so. Sheldon found it a waste of university resources, but she had managed to shush him before he could say anything to Gablehouser's replacement. Howard walking in under his own power (even if he was leaning on Raj pretty heavily) had gotten a pretty heavy round of applause, and had managed to pick up the mood of the place fairly decently. After that, it was pretty much a mindless few hours of standing around with the boys, and a few quick bouts of mingling that mostly just resulted in awkward pauses and people peering at Sheldon like they had to figure him out all over again.
Now that they're back in Penny's apartment, just the two of them, Sheldon has (thank the lord above for small miracles) taken off his plaid blazer, leaving him in his simple white dress shirt and tie, which he is currently in the middle of yanking at the knot with some frustration. She catches him out of the corner of her eye, and can't quite hide the smile. "Sweetie, let me take care of that for you."
He sighs, but acquiesces and his hands drop to his sides. This thing between them is still a little weird, brand new, and Sheldon is still rough around the edges in terms of how much he likes to be touched. She takes him in as she crosses back across the apartment to help him, tie askew, sleeves rolled up just below his elbows, hair a little mussed. When she takes his tie in her hands, she doesn't loosen it right away, but instead she straightens it, and uses it to pull his head down to where she can touch her lips to his in a soft kiss. He doesn't protest, and she can feel his lips exerting the tiniest amount of force back against hers. She lets the moment play out, feeling the warmth of his chest against her fingers, but she doesn't push him either. So it's a bit of a surprise when his hand reaches up, finds a place at her jaw and tilts her head, just so, and then Sheldon's lips part against hers and then, this is it, here is their future for the first time. She's not sure how much of it is instinct and how much of it he knows from the flash forward, but it doesn't really matter, she supposes, not in the long run. They'll get there eventually, inevitably.
She's got one hand clutching his tie, and she's impressing herself with her ability to resist using the free one to start pulling his tucked shirt out of his pants, or really, any number of inappropriate things she could be doing right now. She's letting Sheldon set the pace. Well, mostly.
If her hand manages to tug just enough shirt loose so she can rest her hand directly on his back, well, she can't be blamed for that.
October 13, 2009 - 6:03:54 PM - Tuesday
"OK, Sheldon, I've given you a week to wrap your beautiful mind around what you saw, but seriously, we have to talk about it. You can't avoid me forever. If nothing else we're going to be doing it by April."
This is probably not the approach she should be taking, now that she thinks about it.
The absolute silence coming from the other side of Sheldon's bedroom door agrees. Yep, worst plan ever.
October 15, 2009 - 10:05:45 PM - Thursday
Raj follows her out of the boys apartment, and before she manages to open her apartment door, taps her on the shoulder and makes the universal gesture for tossing one back.
"Sure Raj. Come in."
She gets them both a beer from the fridge, and lets him drink.
"So you and Sheldon, huh?"
Damn him.
"So you and Howard, huh?"
He smiles, and she can't help but laugh. What a pair they make.
"Touché, Penny. Touché."
December 19, 2009 - 12:55:41 AM - Saturday
Sheldon's insisted that if he's spending the night, that he's at least going to go back and get his Friday night pajamas, even if it now technically it is Saturday. It would be pointless to fight him over it, so she just kisses him on the cheek, and tells him she'll go get in bed, just to lock the door after himself when he gets back. Any other guy, they'd read that as a sign, but it's kind of nice knowing that she's probably just going to cuddle with him, if he can actually even manage that.
Penny's pretty impressed when he's back under ten minutes. He definitely gave up the nighttime shower to come back over, and when he crawls into bed but sort of awkwardly pauses, like he's not sure where to go or if he's suppose to hold her, she leans in and kisses him again and they both taste like toothpaste, although his is mint and hers is cinnamon. After that he settles on his back, and lets her put her head on his shoulder, figures out where his arm is suppose to go. He's in the full button-down set, of course, but she worms her fingers in between buttons and rests them above his heartbeat.
"Penny?"
"Yeah, Sheldon?"
"This is much more comfortable than I would have expected."
"I knew you could hack it." She presses her lips just under his jaw, then under his left ear, and she feels his chest suck in a deep breathe of air, and it hits her -- the flash, it's one of his spots. The ones she can use to turn him boneless and pliant.
"Sheldon?"
"Yes, Penny."
"If you could change the future... our future, would you?"
"There have been unsubstantiated rumors that that is indeed possible now."
"Sheldon, I didn't ask you if-- I don't know if it's possible or not. If it is possible, would you do it?"
"We change the future every day, Penny. I can't anticipate every consequence of the actions I take each day. But you wish to determine if I would change a hypothetical future in which we are together, or perhaps you are worrying if I am only here right now because of the fact I have seen this future for myself, and predict it to be a self-fulfilling prophecy?"
She starts to back-pedal, she didn't it mean it like that. The way he says it she sounds like doubts everything they're basing this on.
"I wouldn't change it, Penny. I won't." His tone is definitive, pretty much this conversation has no more value to me written all over it, but his hand comes up and takes hers, holds it to his chest, and she's pretty sure this is the moment she falls in love with him.