Medical Center. Ward.
The newly minted Mrs. Mosby, Anna Mosby, lay in her hospital bed, her face glowing with happiness as she watched her new husband, Ted Mosby, sitting by her side. He held a book in one hand, reading aloud to her, while his other hand gently clasped hers. Every now and then, their eyes met, and they shared a sweet, blissful smile. Pure honeymoon vibes! 💕
That's the scene Adam walked in on.
"Adam, you're here!" Anna greeted him with a warm smile.
"Adam," Ted added, turning slightly to acknowledge him.
"How're you feeling today, Anna?" Adam asked as he started his check-up.
"Great," she replied, glancing at Ted with a little sparkle in her eye. "Better than ever, honestly." 😊
"Good to hear," Adam said with a nod.
"Can Anna make it to Matthew and Lily's wedding the day after tomorrow?" Ted asked, his tone full of concern.
"She's recovering pretty well," Adam said after a moment's thought. "She should be fine to attend, but just to show her face at the key moments. After that, it's back to bed rest—no long hours at the reception."
"That's plenty," Ted said, grinning. "I just want her there with me for a bit. It's Matthew and Lily's big day, after all!"
"Fair enough," Adam agreed. "I'll be there too, keeping an eye on her."
"Thanks, Adam," Anna said sincerely.
Ring ring!
Adam's phone chimed. He pulled it out, waved it at Anna and Ted with a little smile, and stepped out of the room.
"Missy?" he answered.
"Adam, you're really not coming to Aunt Beatrice's funeral?" Missy's voice came through the line.
"Nah, it's too far," Adam said, shaking his head. "Things have been crazy lately, and I can't get away. Tell Emilia I'm sorry, okay?"
Yesterday, he'd gotten the news: Beatrice had hung on for an extra week, cheerful to the end, but no medical miracle swooped in to cancel out her cancer. She'd passed away.
"It's ridiculous!" Missy vented over the phone. "Can you believe there's a town that creepy out there?"
Yup! The news about Hell Town had reached Missy and the gang. It'd freaked Mary out so much she kept calling on God for protection, and it totally derailed their original plans.
Right now, the folks in Hell Town were dying to get out—well, except for the shameless mourners who didn't care about appearances. Who'd even think of holding a funeral there anymore? Beatrice's carefully laid plans for her send-off? Completely kaput.
After some back-and-forth, Mary and the others decided to take Beatrice back to her Texas hometown for a proper burial.
Beatrice and Adam weren't super close. If it'd been in New York, he'd have driven over to pay his respects, no big deal. But Texas? Too far from New York, and Adam wasn't a fan of flying—especially not with everything feeling so chaotic lately. No way was he hopping on a plane for Beatrice's funeral.
"It's not even that rare," Adam said, remembering Missy was still a college freshman in her prime. "Stuff like this pops up all over, especially in remote places. Seriously, don't let your friends talk you into some spontaneous trip. And definitely don't go off to Paris or anywhere with just a couple of girlfriends…"
"Chill," Missy cut in. "I'm spending my break helping Little George make money for us. I don't have time for that American nonsense!"
"Heh, it's our money," Adam teased. "Don't make it sound like I'm working you to death!" 😏
"Ugh, you're not coming, Sheldon's not coming…" Missy sighed on the other end.
"Wait, why isn't Sheldon going?" Adam interrupted.
"Why do you think?" Missy groaned. "The second he heard about Hell Town, he freaked out—especially since he almost ended up at that funeral home. He's terrified. Says he's never going to Aunt Beatrice's funeral, and he hasn't even left the apartment in days. Just shivering in there like a scared puppy!" 😖
"You guys told him?!" Adam's eyes widened. "You've known him forever—don't you know what you can and can't say? Or did you do it on purpose just to dunk on his 'I control my bladder' nonsense?"
Here's the thing: with anyone else, "scared the pants off" is just a figure of speech. With Sheldon? Literal. His famous line, "My bladder, my rules," has never once held up. The guy's a walking case of overcompensating!
"No way!" Missy protested, refusing to take the blame. "He figured it out himself. You know that annoying memory of his—once he hears something, it's stuck forever."
"Mary hasn't gone to comfort him?" Adam asked, curious.
A kid that scared—wouldn't Mary be all over that?
"She's busy looking after Emilia and sorting out Aunt Beatrice's funeral," Missy grumbled. "She doesn't have time to deal with Sheldon. And you know how he is—freaked out like this, even if Mom tried, it'd take days to calm him down. Guess where I am right now?"
"No, no, no… the horror…" came Sheldon's low, trembling mutter through the phone.
"Mary sent you to babysit Sheldon, huh?" Adam realized with a grin.
"I'm the younger one!" Missy shot back. She muttered a few soothing words to Sheldon, stepped out of the room, and closed the door before venting to Adam. "It's not fair!"
"Maybe you're the big sister after all," Adam teased. "Could be Mary and the gang got it mixed up."
Side note: In The Big Bang Theory, Missy's the older one—Big Missy once said Sheldon spent nine months under her, and since babies usually come out head-first, she was born first. Older sister! But in Young Sheldon, she's the little sis. English just calls them both "sister," though, so who can tell? Same deal with uncles, aunts, and cousins—total mess!
"I'm out of ideas," Missy sighed. "I've been here a whole day, and Sheldon's not calming down one bit. Looks like Emilia's just gonna be disappointed—her cousin's way too chicken!"
"Hahaha!" Adam burst out laughing. "She'll get used to it eventually. Call it an early lesson!"
"True," Missy said with a reluctant chuckle. "She's part of the Cooper clan now—she's gotta get used to the weirdness. She's got it better than I did, though. I was the invisible kid back in the day. Now she's got Mom doting on her, me looking out for her as the big sis, and Little George isn't such a jerk anymore. Plus, the biggest troublemaker, Sheldon, is hardly ever around. She's living the dream!" 😅
"Your bar for happiness is so low," Adam quipped. "But yeah, spend enough time with Sheldon, and your standards for joy drop through the floor. That's his superpower!"
Think about it: in the future, when Sheldon's buddies heard he was off to the Arctic for the summer, they lost it. Rajesh was pumped to hang out freely. Howard dreamed of sitting on the left side of the couch—or even sneaking into Sheldon's sacred spot. Leonard? Thrilled he could hit the bathroom at 8:20 without breaking a sweat. Normally, if his stomach acted up then, he'd either hold it or leave the apartment entirely. If he hadn't survived that middle school laxative prank where they blocked the bathroom, he'd never have made it through Sheldon's rules!
They were all giddy, celebrating their tiny wins, until the high faded. Then it hit them: since Sheldon came into their lives, their dreams had gotten so small.
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(Chapter End)