Chapter 148: Sheldon Has Always Been a Bright Kid
"Oh, Uncle Frank? He's been doing pretty well lately. He was saying a while ago that you hadn't been in touch. I should take you to see Uncle Frank sometime." Tucker rambled, winking at Ron. From behind the bushes, the sound of twigs snapping underfoot echoed, and a professional-looking woman emerged from cover.
"Tucker, is this your friend?"
Oh, I see. So they're working together? No wonder he started talking nonsense about Uncle Frank, someone who doesn't even exist.
"Yes, we're friends. Sorry, but you're eliminated. See you later," Ron said, gesturing to the woman behind him and firing a paintball to eliminate her.
"It's a deal then. Contact me when you have time. I'll go with you to see Uncle Frank." Ron gripped Tucker's shoulder hard, the pressure strong enough to hurt, but Tucker didn't dare cry out, his face turning pale.
"Ron, we have eight flags now. Are we close to winning?"
Two hours later, Ron couldn't find any new opponents, so he had Penny count their flags.
"Well, we've already won. If I remember correctly, there were only ten teams competing," Ron said, relaxing his guard and slinging his paintball marker over his shoulder. "Are you hungry? How about we grab some lunch?"
Ron's original purpose for the day was to spend time with Jessica on their date, but since he only saw her as a sister figure, he didn't want to make things awkward, so he didn't mind having Penny join them.
"I know a restaurant near here that my family owns, and I happen to have some money," Jessica offered quickly. Penny's presence made her a little nervous.
Could this be competition? She had just been chatting with Penny, and Ron actually lived with her.
Ron had even tried to convince her with his playboy claims, even though Penny had clearly said he'd never made a move on her. The disappointment in her voice had been completely believable!
Am I really that naive? Jessica couldn't help but smile to herself.
Ron truly was a gentleman and a good man.
If Ron knew what was going through Jessica's mind, he'd be speechless: Girl, listen: I'm not making moves on Penny because she's not my type!
The so-called conquest-through-restraint strategy is the most effective, and this was probably what that meant. Looking at Jessica, who was gazing at him with such admiration, Ron felt that this girl was truly smitten.
"That's a bit much. Mr. Turner and I agreed that I'd take care of you today." Ron wasn't shameless enough to take someone's daughter to her family's restaurant for a free meal.
"Excuse me, ladies, can you eat seafood?" Ron asked, shoving the oversized teddy bear he'd won into Jessica's arms.
It was the prize for the competition: a six-foot-tall, camouflage-patterned bear dressed in military gear and holding a toy rifle. When Jessica held it, the envy of the surrounding kids was obvious.
Including Penny.
After receiving two affirmative responses, Ron opened the car door and let the two women get in first. "Maybe we can have a seafood lunch today. I happen to know of a place called Red Lobster less than eight miles from here. Their garlic shrimp scampi is really good."
Ron said proudly, patting the gift card in his pocket.
Who says there's no such thing as a free lunch? If Ron were shameless enough to eat there every day, he'd probably max out the card.
What? With so much money, why would he care about such a small amount? Don't you know that wealthy people are careful with money?
"You mean Red Lobster!" Penny's eyes widened and she said excitedly, "I've seen it featured in Food & Wine magazine. It got great reviews! Thanks for treating us, Ron!"
"Who says I have to treat you too? We'll split the check." Ron said teasingly, "Of course, no need to pay in cash."
"No need to pay in cash?" Penny's eyes sparkled, her hair swaying flirtatiously, and she glanced at Jessica next to her with a look of mock scandal, "You can do whatever you want. Let's talk about it when we get back. There are innocent people here."
Ron flicked Penny hard on the forehead, "What are you thinking? I mean, from now on, you're responsible for cleaning the apartment for the next month. God, every time I come home, I feel like I'm living in a disaster zone!"
"Haha." Jessica giggled, but immediately covered her mouth modestly.
Ron turned the key to start the car, and a second before driving away, a thought flashed through his mind: I feel like I'm forgetting something?
Forget it, if I can't remember it, it must not be important. I won't worry about it anymore, let's eat!
"Ladies, please buckle your seat belts, let's go!"
...
At six o'clock in the evening, the sun had quietly set and disappeared behind the clouds. A head like a bird's nest suddenly popped out from the grass next to the restroom in the paintball field: "Why hasn't anyone come to the bathroom for so long? Don't people drink water when they play paintball?"
"Shut up! Raj, stay hidden! You're exposing our position!" Sheldon's head also popped out from nearby: "I swear as your commanding officer, if you cause us to be eliminated, I will definitely court-martial you!"
"There are no court-martials in paintball competitions! Why do I feel like something's wrong? Do you know what time it is?"
Howard held up his dead phone, "My phone's battery died. It ran out when I was playing Tetris with you earlier. Sheldon, do you remember when you last checked the time?"
"It was one in the afternoon, before the Tetris game started, and I was eating that chicken sandwich your mom made. It was really good today, and I'm sure it would have tasted even better if we weren't eating it next to the restroom," Sheldon replied without thinking.
"Guys, I feel like something's wrong. It's definitely not two or three in the afternoon!" Raj continued to question the time.
"It's just a normal overcast day. You're bound to encounter a few such days in the fall. Don't worry, I brought a tarp. If it rains, you can take shelter with me."
"Sheldon, you're so prepared." Raj's questioning immediately turned to admiration.
"CRACK!"
A flash of lightning streaked across the sky, and before the thunder had even finished rumbling, the rain began to pour down.
Howard held down his cap, which threatened to fly off in the strong wind. "Sheldon, let's give up! There's shelter in the equipment building."
"No way! Penny and the others will laugh at us!" Leonard, awakened by the rain, shook Sheldon. "Sheldon, where's your tarp? Get it out!"
"Wait, don't panic, it's right here..." Sheldon had just pulled out the tarp when a strong gust of wind caught it like a kite.
"Oh no! What do we do now?" Raj huddled up like a wet bird.
"What else can we do? Run! Let's hide in the restroom!"
Meanwhile, Ron, who had already taken Jessica home, was enjoying a delicious meal prepared by Aunt Leigh Anne with Mr. Turner and his family. He sipped his wine, then looked out at the downpour and muttered to himself,
"I think there was a severe weather warning for today."
"Yes, I remember you said you were with Sheldon. How are they doing?" Mr. Turner asked, raising his glass.
"Who knows? Maybe they've already gone home?" Ron clinked glasses with him. "Sheldon's always been a bright kid."
(End of chapter)
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