Chapter 169 159 - Paige In The Office

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3rd POV

Sheldon stepped out of his apartment carrying a basket of dirty clothes with his face set in a frown. It was laundry night, and no matter what thought in his head, he couldn't skip it. He just had to suck it up or he would be mad.

What thought, you may ask? The thought of Paige showing up at his office on Monday.

Sheldon knew she was coming for what else besides to annoy him. Ohh, She liked to annoy him, to mess with his head and she was very good at it.

There was nothing inherently wrong with Paige being there. The problem was that Paige would disrupt his work. Her presence wasn't just distracting; it scrambled his focus entirely.

He descended the stairs, lost in thought, ignoring Leonard sulking on the sofa before. Even when Sheldon walked in front of him, he didn't look at him at all, and just stared at the TV. Sheldon knew this mood, it was connected to Leonard's date with Leslie, but he didn't care enough to ask. Not unless Leonard brought it up himself.

Down in the laundry room, Sheldon found Penny already folding her clothes, haphazardly piling them into crooked stacks.

"Oh, hey Sheldon!" Penny greeted, squinting at him when she caught his disapproving glance.

"Hello, Penny," Sheldon replied curtly, moving past her with his basket. Trying to hold himself to not criticize her for the way she lived right now.

"Don't you dare comment on the way I fold my laundry," she warned, narrowing her eyes. "I already told you that."

"I'm trying to ignore it," Sheldon said stiffly, though his voice carried a tremor of restraint. He began sorting his clothes by color and fabric, dropping them into the machine with precise motions.

When he finished, he couldn't resist. He walked over to Penny and began refolding her shirts with mechanical efficiency.

"I must point out, Penny," he said calmly, plucking a blouse from her pile, "this isn't right. If you fold your clothes improperly, the fabric will wear faster."

Penny sighed. "Sheldon, they're just clothes."

Sheldon shook his head. "There's no such thing as 'just clothes.'"

Penny groaned, letting Sheldon take over and by now, it had become their unspoken laundry night routine. Every week, she just let him work his magic.

"Hey," she said casually, watching him crease one of her shirts with clinical precision. "Last night, where were you? I called Raj, and he said you weren't with them."

"I already told you that right? I was out. Meeting my old… friend." Sheldon's lips twitched as he spoke, his face betraying him.

Penny narrowed her eyes. After a year or two of friendship, she knew that twitch meant only one thing: Sheldon was lying.

She stared at him, silent, waiting.

Sheldon flicked a glance at her from the corner of his eye, hoping she'd buy it. She didn't.

"…Alright," he huffed. "I was with my sister. And my old nemesis."

"Oh." Penny blinked, surprised. "Missy's still in town? Why didn't she say anything to me? I thought we were friends."

"She's only here for a day. She's flying out again out of town." Sheldon paused, then quickly added, "And no, my brother is not here." He cut her off before she could even open her mouth.

Penny pouted, "....I wasn't going to ask that." but Sheldon arched a brow. He didn't believe her.

"Is your shoot finished, Penny?" Sheldon asked, breaking the silence as he folded the last of her clothes. "A movie that I recommend." Sheldon added with details.

Penny beamed at him, then her smile faltered into an apologetic look. "Yeah. I really enjoyed it and thanks to you, I even got the chance to learn with them." She paused before quickly steering the conversation elsewhere. "Anyway, last night I overheard Leonard talking with his date."

She didn't want to talk about the shoot. Not after what she'd done, and not after what Sheldon had given her. He'd handed her a golden opportunity, and in return she'd slapped him.

That wasn't fair.

Worse, after that, Sheldon had told her point-blank that she didn't like him and that he wasn't in love with her either.

Of course she wanted to change the subject of conversation.

"I suspected as much," Sheldon said matter-of-factly. "He's sulking on the sofa right now, ignoring me. I already knew his date was doomed, even without my presence there to 'mess' it up like he said."

What Penny didn't know was that Sheldon hadn't thought too deeply about helping her. Sure, he had tested her before, gauging her commitment to acting.

But in the end, he didn't want anything back.

Penny was his friend, his neighbor, and one of the few people he let into his orbit. Helping her was simply what he did, it was a lesson instilled by his family, especially his mother.

And that slap? That had been him trying to copy Georgie's style, just like Missy once teased him about. Truth was, Sheldon hadn't thought it through at all.

Anyway, he is a gentleman with a genius mind.

Penny nodded again. "Yeah… I feel a little bad for him. I hope he gets it right next time." She glanced down at her folded laundry. "Well—thanks for folding my clothes, Sheldon. See you soon."

Sheldon waved a dismissive hand and sat on a waiting chair, opening his comic book while the washer rumbled in the background. "Statistically, his chances are low, but yes. See you soon, Penny."

Penny lifted her basket, then hesitated. She looked at Sheldon timidly, biting her lip. She knew she shouldn't ask—it was pointless after she'd already dodged this topic earlier. And yet… the question slipped out of her mind again.

"Sheldon," she said softly.

He lowered the comic, eyes narrowing in focus.

"…Are you really not interested in me?"

"No." Sheldon said flatly. His face was still, no twitch, no blinking and just honesty.

Penny stared at him for a beat. Maybe it was for the best. She wasn't interested in him either—not really.

But yet, lately, Sheldon has been changing quite drastically. Everyone noticed it, even she had.

Sheldon becomes more, Manly? She didn't know what words were in it, but she felt it.

What the hell was she thinking?

She shook her head quickly, forcing a smile. "Alright, Sheldon. I just wanted to make sure." she said and looked at him, who was already covering his face with comics.

"I know," Sheldon replied, lowering his comic again. "And I know your feelings too. You bring another date over and over, already explains it."

Penny groaned, cheeks flushing. "Alright! Enough! See you later, Sheldon!" She grabbed her basket and bolted out of the laundry room.

Sheldon calmly lifted his comic back to his face, unbothered. "Bazinga." he muttered under his breath, though there was no one left to hear it and nobody saw the twitch on his face right now.

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On Monday, Sheldon stepped into his office with hesitation, scanning the corners as if expecting an ambush.

"No sight of her… good. Very good." He exhaled in relief.

He hated this feeling—disrupted, unsettled—but work came first. The secrets of the universe wouldn't unravel themselves.

He needed that Nobel as soon as possible.

"...Physics is my lady, and I treat her like a queen…" he muttered, eyes closed, repeating it like a mantra. Focus and respect to physics tried to ignore all distractions.

Then a voice cut through his thoughts, "It's a small office. Not even close to the size of your old one." the same voice who he tried to avoid.

Sheldon opened his eyes, groaning. There sat Paige, comfortably perched in his chair, glancing around with amusement.

"It's better for my goals," Sheldon snapped. "Better to pursue a Nobel than waste time chasing money."

Paige smirked. "So what your brother does is beneath you, huh? Nice words, Sheldon. I'm proud of you."

His jaw tightened. "…What do you really want, Paige? Are you here just to annoy me?"

She gave an exaggerated pout. "I just wanted to see your office, Shelly. Why so tense? Am I bothering you that much?"

"If I said yes, would you leave?"

"Of course not." she said sweetly, her eyes already drifting to his whiteboard. "Nice board."

Sheldon puffed up a little at the compliment… of course until Paige leaned in closer, smirking. "You missed your neutrino there." She tapped the spot with her finger, and Sheldon's entire body stiffened.

Nobody touched his board.

But this was Paige, and she had dared to, all the time. Sheldon frowned at the spot she'd pointed out, jaw tight.

"…Let's get you a tour," he said abruptly, steering Paige out of his office. She protested, but weakly because there wasn't much else in his office to see anyway.

As they strolled down the hallway, Sheldon suddenly stopped. "I forgot something. Be right back." He spun on his heel and darted back into the office.

Paige sighed, arms crossed, waiting.

Moments later, Sheldon re-emerged, holding up his wallet like a trophy. "I forgot my wallet."

Paige narrowed her eyes. "You fixed your board, didn't you?"

Sheldon didn't flinch. "Let's get you a tour." he repeated firmly, tugging her along before she could press further.

Behind them, Howard watched Sheldon with the hot girl like a hawk eyeing its prey.

Of course…where there was a hot girl, there was Howard.

"This feels like déjà vu…" Howard muttered, still trailing after them. For a moment, he considered stepping in, but the memory of being body-slammed by a woman in the past kept him back. Better to observe first, from a safe distance of course.

At first, it was just Howard sneaking behind them. Then a few other guys joined in, and before long Leonard and Raj were following too.

"What are you doing, sneaking like that?!" a voice boomed suddenly. "Are you conducting research, or just stalking people like some kind of creep?!"

Doctor Gablehauser's voice cut through the hall, making both Sheldon and Paige turn.

Most of the scientists who didn't know Sheldon much, scattered immediately after their boss' voices, leaving only Leonard, Howard, and Raj—who froze with awkward smiles on their faces hoping Sheldon recognized them immediately.

But Sheldon paid attention only to Doctor Gabblehauser, "Doctor Gablehauser," Sheldon said stiffly, stepping forward. "This is my former colleague, Paige Swanson. She had the chance to visit and is currently… bothering me at work." He shot Paige a pointed glare.

Hoping Doctor Gabblehauser rescues him from this woman.

"Hello," Paige said smoothly. "I'm Paige Swanson, from Cooper Global Holding."

And it's gone, his only rescue.

"Miss Swanson! Welcome to Caltech!" Gablehauser beamed, shaking her hand with far too much enthusiasm. "I'm sure you only know a little about us here. Perhaps you and Sheldon would like a tour?"

There's a chance he will go back to his office and let Doctor Gabblehauser handle this woman, "I'd better—" Sheldon started, clearly ready to excuse himself.

But Paige looped her arm through his. "We'd love to. Right, Sheldon?" she said brightly, holding on tight for Sheldon not to get out of this mess.

But from the outside of their view, it looked like something else entirely, something madness is happening here.

Nobody dared to touch Sheldon Cooper, unless they were ready to face the consequences. Either a relentless lecture, or worse, watching him spiral into one of his fits.

But now, everyone was staring at the woman boldly linking her arm with his.

And Sheldon didn't even try to shake her off. He just frowned and grumbled under his breath, dragged along by Paige's grip.

From the back, Howard whispered, "Unbelievable….He doesn't even appreciate it!"

Leonard frowned but kept looking at Sheldon back, "Trust me, neither would you."

Raj just nodded silently, eyes wide, but came back with the same question everybody has right now, "Who is she?"

Leonard didn't know the answer himself, he muttered flatly, "Maybe she's his sister. Like Missy?"

His tone was calm, but only Leonard knew the truth—he was desperately hoping it was true.

Howard and Raj both nodded in unison.

"Let's go, guys," Howard whispered. "Maybe we can get Sheldon to introduce us to his 'sister'." Then, with a sly grin, he added, "I don't see a bodyguard anywhere… so I think we're safe."

The three of them nodded again, almost like conspirators, pulling out their phones at the same time—ready to text Sheldon and demand an introduction to his so-called 'sister.'