Adult-FanFiction.org : Television / Streaming

Collide, or, The Cooper-Ballard Convergence	By : FemmeBono Category: 1 through F > The Big Bang Theory Views: 4469 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Big Bang Theory, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 9
- 10
- 11
Cht 10

Out of the back you fall in time

I somehow find you and I collide
The trip Sheldon had planned was phenomenal. Even the guys had to admit that it sounded like fun. The Coastal Starlight rail line started in Seattle and ended in Los Angeles, running straight down the coast, and featured not only sleeper cars and a dining car, but a kiddie car with an arcade as well.
He had gotten the trip postponed until Whitney got her cast off, but Sheldon still insisted on learning the physical therapy treatments she would need so he could do them with her even though she would miss her appointment that week. He had endlessly harassed the physical therapist, hounding him with questions about alternate methods and which tools were best, how much pressure to use and whether the equipment was hygienic. Dr. Russell had finally enforced a no-Sheldon policy on Whitney's sessions, but provided her with a chart of exercises for Sheldon to help her with if he promised to stay away and leave the therapist alone.

All the staff at Caltech were convinced he had finally cracked when he put in for vacation without being forced. Worse yet, he had taken to wearing his conductor's cap all the time. Whitney merely shook her head and snickered when she popped in to have lunch with he and the guys from time to time.
Sheldon and Whitney hung out more and more frequently. He helped her with her undergrad classes; she took him to a rifle range to keep his skills sharp. With his help, she had finally bowled a strike that very week.

So when the day came that they headed to Seattle and the door closed to apartment 4A, the heated debates began on whether or not Sheldon Cooper would come back a man. Raj, ever the romantic, sided with Penny. They bet against Leonard, Bernadette, and Howard that Sheldon would lay down plastic sheets, use double condoms and urge Whitney to take a thorough cleansing before and after engaging in coitus. Leonard insisted that he would put her to sleep spouting off random facts about trains. Howard disagreed. He swore that Whitney would finally snap after the first hour and a half alone with him and try to dangle him off the back of the caboose. Bernadette, on the other hand, seemed to think Sheldon would be banished to the arcade for the duration of the trip.
None of the above were further from the truth. True to form, Sheldon rattled on about the rail line, trains in general, and his love for them. When he tired of this, he and Whitney both checked out the arcade, which featured classic pinball games, skee ball, and even Pac-Man and Donkey Kong. Whitney was excited to see an old Galaga game there and by dinner time, she and Sheldon both had worked up an appetite gaming.
When Whitney stifled a yawn over dinner, Sheldon shyly told her that the sleeping compartment was double occupancy and that they would be sharing the car. Whitney smiled tiredly and said that was fine.
"Sheldon, I don't think I trust anyone else more," Whitney smiled. "I just hope I don't have any more nightmares, that's all."
"Oh, I'm far too excited to sleep," Sheldon said gamely. "I'll be watching the lights as we pass through all the cities and towns. I may even go back to the arcade and play Mrs. Pac-Man this time."
Instead, Whitney suggested they both take a hot cocoa to go so they could watch the lights stream by out the window from their sleeper car.

Sheldon sat on the edge of his bed, holding his cup in his lap, staring out at the darkness punctuated by ships' lights off the coast. Whitney set her cup on the floor and moved to sit next to him. Without speaking, she glanced at him and smiled, taking his hand before leaning into him. She laid her head on his shoulder and watched out the window in silence for a moment.
"Sheldon I'm glad you set all this up," she said finally. "I'm having a blast."
"Just wait til we get to Los Angeles," he answered, removing his hand to slip his arm around her. "This is going to be the train-filled trip of a lifetime. First we start with lunch at Carney’s in Studio City, a hot dog stand in a converted railroad dining car. Next stop, Travel Town, an outdoor museum featuring 43 railroad engines, cars and other rolling stock from the 1880s to the 1930s. Finally, we’re off to the glitz and glamour of Hollywood for dinner at--that’s right--the Hollywood Carney’s, a hot dog stand in a different converted railroad dining car."
"Well, that should be right up your alley," Whitney smiled.
As almost an afterthought Sheldon asked, "was there anything you wanted to do?"
"I'd like to go up and see the sign," Whitney replied.
"For Carney's or Travel Town?"
Whitney snickered, "for Hollywood, silly! The most famous sign in town."
"Oh. I suppose we could."
"Shel," she said, bringing her hand up to his chin and turning him to face her. "Thank you." And with that, she kissed him lightly on his cheek.
"Whitney," Sheldon said slowly, turning more fully to face her. Whitney tried to draw her eyes away from his mouth but couldn't. Her own had gone dry and she swallowed.
"Yeah?"
"I don't think I mind your germs."
Before Whitney could ask what that meant, his head dipped to hers and he met her lips with his, surprising a gasp out of her when his tongue lapped at her mouth. Sheldon's fingers ghosted over the side of her face. He rested his thumb against her cheek and tilted his head to take advantage of her parted lips. Not only was he a fast learner, but if Whitney had known what it meant, she would have said Sheldon Cooper was a big ole five.
She opened her eyes as she felt him pull away. His face was a study of wonder as he licked his lips, his hand still touching her face.
"I'd better take these back to the dining car," he said, standing quickly and gathering the cups.
"I'm ah...I'll just...get ready for bed," Whitney finished lamely. Sheldon made it almost to the door before he turned, rushed back, cups still in his hands and leaned down for another kiss. He then turned just as abruptly and left.
Whitney did not wait for him to come back. She assumed, rightly, that he needed time to sort through the myriad emotions that must be running through him just as they were her. She changed into the silky sleep shirt she had brought and slid between the sheets with a sigh. She had left the light on in the bath compartment, which gave a dim glow to the rest of the room, along with the window on Sheldon's side of the car, which she had left open for him to see out.

An hour or so later, Sheldon crept back in to their car. He ran through his nighttime routine as quickly and silently as possible, closed the window and left the light on in the bath compartment. Reaching for his messenger bag on the floor, he quietly lifted his laptop out and began to work, dimming the brightness of the screen so it would not wake Whitney.
He did not work for long before his eyes started to get droopy with fatigue. Rubbing at them, he saved his work and powered down, sliding the laptop back in its case. He was just sliding down in the sheets when he heard Whitney mumble something in her sleep. He raised his head and looked over in the dim light of the compartment and saw her head moving side to side. Believing she was having another nightmare, Sheldon crossed quickly to her side and slid under the covers beside her, wrapping his arms around her as best he could.
"There, there," he whispered. "Sheldon's here."
Whitney said nothing, but shifted in her sleep and then stilled. Within moments her breathing evened out again and she drifted off peacefully. Not long after, Sheldon followed suit, still curled around her.

Lyrics from Howie Day's "Collide"
- 9
- 10
- 11
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Collide, or, The Cooper-Ballard Convergence