Ali POV
We entered Sheldon and Leonard's apartment and I was surprised to find it to be clean and in order—something I did not expect from two men living together. The first thing I saw was a whiteboard sitting across the room. I found this fact comforting because when I'm writing a new story, I like to write the basic outline on a whiteboard so I have a quick reference to major plot points, character descriptions, and background settings. I have a few of my own laying around. I was shocked and impressed that the equations on it were extremely advanced. I hadn't seen equations that complex since my college physics class. I have an appreciation for those who excel in their chosen passions, even when they differ from my own.
Penny saw the board as well and said, "Wow, that's some serious stuff. Leonard, did you do this?"
Sheldon then walked over and said, "Actually, that board is mine. It isn't much, it's just a little quantum mechanics with some string theory doodling around the edges. That part there at the bottom is just a joke. It's a spoof of the Born-Oppenheimer approximation."
Penny, in all her glory, said, "So you're like one of those Beautiful Mind genius guys? That's really impressive."
Sheldon just said, "Yeah," while blushing a little. It was kind of cute, in a way. How shy he got over my sister's compliment was just too endearing.
At this, Leonard said, "I have a board if you like boards. This is my board."
A little desperately, if you ask me—but hey, it's not like I care. He's just a neighbor. It's not like we're gonna be too involved in their lives. Although I wouldn't mind getting to know Sheldon more, I thought.
Penny, being the kind person she is, said, "Holy smokes," like she was actually impressed—which, to be honest, she probably was.
Sheldon snorted and said, "If by 'holy smokes' you mean a derivative restatement of the kind of stuff you can find written on any bathroom stall at MIT, then sure."
Leonard said, "What?" in a nasal voice, as Sheldon turned to look at him and said, "Oh, come on. Who hasn't seen this differential below 'Here I sit, brokenhearted'?"
Leonard then got defensive and said, "Well, at least I didn't have to invent 26 dimensions just to make the math come out."
I could tell Sheldon was getting frustrated with Leonard as he said, "I didn't invent them, they were there."
Leonard, not missing a beat, said, "In what universe?"
Sheldon, slightly raising his voice, said, "In all of them. That is the point."
Penny, not wanting to let the fight continue—much to my chagrin, for this was very entertaining to watch—said, "Um... Do you guys mind if I start?" as she pointed to the food on the coffee table while sitting on the couch.
Sheldon then said while looking uncomfortable, "Um... Penny, that's my spot."
Penny just smiled, looked at me, and then shook her head as she moved over to the chair next to the couch.
Leonard looked at Penny and said, "You didn't have to move for his sake."
Penny laughed lightly and said, "It's okay, I'm used to it. Ali is the same way. She has a favorite spot, and if I sit in it I can expect an ass-whooping from her. She doesn't play nice when it comes to her spot."
I rolled my eyes at her as I walked across the room and sat in the middle of the couch next to Sheldon's spot and laughingly said, "If I could trust you to not mess it up, I might let you sit in it when I'm not around. But alas, I can't, so it's my spot and you can't touch it."
Penny rolled her eyes at me and said, "Oh my gosh, you just won't let me live it down, will you?"
I responded with, "You ruined my couch cushion with nail polish," to which Penny just scoffed at me. Leonard sat down on the chair next to Penny and began pulling out the food as Sheldon went to get drinks for us.
As Sheldon handed me my drink, I said, "Thank you."
He responded by nodding and said, "You're welcome."
Turning to Leonard, he said, "You see that, Leonard? Manners in a social setting are greatly appreciated."
I giggled at that along with Penny, who quickly stopped when she saw the look Leonard was giving Sheldon. After eating and talking for a while more about surface-level things such as what we did for a living and lightly touching on hobbies, I excused myself to go shower from being down in the basement. Heading home, I got undressed and went to turn on the faucet, but no water came out.
"Well, that's just great," I said to myself. I grabbed a towel and went to knock on the boys' door. Leonard answered with a shocked look and I walked in.
Seeing Penny still on the couch, I said, "The shower is broken. Can you call the building manager?" Then I looked at Leonard and asked, "Do you mind if I use your shower? I can't stand feeling grimy."
Leonard kind of nervous-giggled and pointed down the hallway, while Sheldon said, "There is a trick to the nozzle. I will show you how to turn it on," as he got up for me to follow him into the bathroom.
Sheldon was careful to keep a distance between us as he turned on the shower. I didn't blame him for this—I wouldn't want to touch me either with all this sweat from moving Penny's things. Once the shower was on, I asked him, "Could you ask Penny to get me some clean clothes from my closet?" As an afterthought, I added, "The ones in the section labeled 'for home wear,' please."
Sheldon looked at me with what I assume was curiosity and wonder but said, "Sure, I will do that right now. Enjoy your shower."
Sheldon POV
I came out of the bathroom slightly dazed and impressed by my new neighbor. She seems to like order as much as I do. This is new—I have never met anyone who is even close to my level of organization. Walking into the living room to find Penny, I said, "Ali asked me to see if you would get her some clothes from her 'home wear' section of her closet?"
She looked like she was about to go do what her sister asked when the building manager finally picked up.
She looked at me and asked, "Could you do it, please? I'm on the phone," to which I nodded and got up. Penny tossed me her keys as I made it to the door. I almost dropped them—who throws things at people, I thought—but hurried to get Ali some clothes. She couldn't walk around naked. I sniggered as I thought of Leonard fainting at seeing Ali in a towel. This thought also made me a little uncomfortable for some reason. Maybe it was the thought of a naked stranger in my house... Oh well, I thought as I entered the girls' apartment.
"It's chaos," I whispered as I took a tentative first step into the apartment.
Walking down the hall, I saw a bedroom with the door wide open, boxes and suitcases strewn about. I didn't think this was her room—she doesn't seem so chaotic. Walking further down the hallway, I found the bathroom, which was orderly and clean. The door across from the restroom looked promising, so I opened it and walked in. My first impression was that the room was welcoming and neat. I saw shelves above her computer desk with books, superhero figures, comics, and manga. This detail made me happy because I have never met a woman who likes comics and superheroes like I do. I would like to talk with Ali more for her opinions on comic books and sci-fi if she is willing, but first—the task at hand.
I walked over to her closet and opened it to find a closet I was impressed with—and that's saying something. She had shelves labeled memorabilia, comics, and costume accessories. On top of the dresser tucked into the left corner, she had a small jewelry box and a tray with sunglasses on it. Each drawer had a label indicating what was in each, so finding her unmentionables was easy enough. I took out the gloves from my pocket and put them on. Opening the drawer labeled 'underwear,' I saw she had matching sets separated into different sections labeled 'period,' 'home wear,' 'date night,' and 'special occasion.' I pulled out one of the sets labeled 'home wear' and moved on to the drawer with socks.
This drawer was confusing and not at the same time, and that contradiction frustrated me. The labels in this drawer were 'comfy,' 'slipper,' 'tights,' 'nylons,' and 'thigh high.' I pulled a pair of socks labeled 'comfy' and moved on to clothes. This should be easier, I thought—but those hopes were quickly dashed. She didn't have days-of-the-week labels like I did. No, she had nonsense labels like 'sleep,' 'home,' 'errands,' 'meetings,' 'casual,' 'special occasion,' and 'flirty.' Whatever that last one was eluded me, so I once again picked 'home wear' because that was what she requested. I settled on a hanger with a pair of jeans and a Superman T-shirt. I folded and placed her clothes in a large canvas bag I found hanging in the closet with the label 'travel' above it.
After this was done, I took my gloves off, closed her bedroom door, and walked out of the apartment without looking at the mess as much as possible, telling myself that it would be cleaned up soon as they were just moving in.
Entering my own apartment, I handed Penny her keys and walked to the bathroom where I had left Ali. Knocking on the door, I said, "Ali, Penny had asked me to get your clothing due to the fact that she had just gotten through to the building manager. I hope that is acceptable."
I heard her feet shuffle through the door as she opened it just enough for me to see her face. She had a slight blush, probably from the shower. I quickly handed the bag over and said, "Do not worry. I wore gloves to touch your unmentionables, and I must say I am quite impressed by your organizational methods—although some of your labels do confuse me."
Ali POV
I was standing naked—well, not totally naked. I was in a towel—when Sheldon came and knocked on the door. He was prattling on about labels. I could have sworn he was nervous, especially when he called my underwear 'unmentionables' and said he put on gloves to touch them. I was kind of upset with Penny for having Sheldon get my clothes but let it go when he said why he did so in the end.
After he admitted that some of my labels confused him, I giggled and said, "Thank you for doing this, Sheldon. I appreciate it. As for my confusing labels, they make perfect sense to me, so I guess that is all that matters. Plus, if Penny borrows any of my stuff, she puts it back where she found it this way. So I kind of label with her in mind—otherwise, my house would be a wreck. I'm gonna get dressed now, and we can talk more once I'm out and have clothes on."
Sheldon blushed again and said, "Of course. I will leave you to it."
He then turned and left me to dress in peace. I pulled out my clothes, finding my underwear at the bottom of the bag, and put it on. I unfolded my clothes and found it funny that he picked my Superman shirt, but put it on regardless. After finishing, I towel-dried my hair and left the bathroom.