Raj was in his apartment, dressing carefully. In the background, "Smooth" by Santana featuring Rob Thomas was playing. He hummed along to the lyrics while spreading cream on his face.
"Give me your heart, make it real, or else forget about it… 🎶"
"Because today, nothing can go wrong… 🎶" he murmured to himself.
Combing his hair, he leaned closer to the mirror. Satisfied, he took a step back, admiring his reflection.
"Perfect as always, Raj," he said, winking at himself in the mirror.
Walking over to the closet, he opened the doors and grabbed his favorite leather jacket. The eagle embroidered on the back seemed to shine. Raj ran his hand over the jacket.
"This is the final piece of the puzzle," he said, slipping it on and adjusting the shoulders.
When it came to cologne, Raj glanced at the shelf. There were two bottles he always used, and he could never decide which one was better.
"Which one of you will make me win today?" he asked, holding both bottles.
After a few seconds of silence, he shrugged.
"You know what? You two are going to fight." Raj sprayed one cologne on one side of his neck, then the other on the opposite side, shaking his head in satisfaction. "Now I'm ready."
He paused at the door, grabbing his motorcycle helmet and keys.
"Will Missy be at Sheldon's apartment?" He paused, "Probably."
With that, he slung the helmet over his arm, grabbed the motorcycle key, and left his apartment.
.
.
.
Raj arrived at Sheldon's apartment and knocked on the door, adjusting his jacket and taking a deep breath. When the door opened, he was greeted by Sheldon, who, to his surprise, didn't make any effort to let him in. Instead, Sheldon stared at him with a serious expression.
"Rajesh, may I ask you a few questions before I allow you to enter?"
Raj raised an eyebrow, confused.
"Questions? What do you mean?"
Sheldon crossed his arms, completely blocking the doorway.
"First: are you here for any reason related to my sister?"
Raj's eyes widened, and he chuckled nervously, shaking his head.
"Of course not, Sheldon! I just… came to visit you guys."
"Hmmm…" Sheldon looked at him suspiciously. "You're not here to 'hit on' my sister, are you?"
Raj forced a smile, his voice getting slightly higher as he denied it vehemently.
"No! Absolutely not, Sheldon! I would never do that. I just… came to see you guys. That's all."
Sheldon narrowed his eyes, still suspicious.
"Why all this interrogation, Sheldon?" Raj asked.
"For this reason." Sheldon pointed behind him.
Raj peeked around Sheldon, and his mood soured as he saw what was happening. Howard stood in front of Missy, clearly trying to impress her with some clumsy magic trick. Leonard, on the other hand, was beside her, gesturing wildly about something Raj couldn't quite hear, but he already knew Leonard was trying to impress her too.
Raj squinted his eyes and muttered under his breath, "Traitors."
Sheldon, unfazed, put in his earplugs and sat in his chair with his laptop.
***
"Okay, Missy, pick a card… any card. But don't tell me which one it is, just keep it to yourself."
Missy forced a polite smile and picked a card, trying to keep up with Howard's enthusiasm.
Leonard, on the other side, was rambling about quantum physics.
"Did you know that subatomic particles can exist in two places at once? It's like… quantum superposition! Amazing, right?"
Missy's eyes darted between the two, overwhelmed by all the attention.
Howard, oblivious, continued.
"Now, I'm going to guess your card using my mind! Leonard, you're distracting Missy with all your theories. Focus on the magic."
Leonard rolled his eyes and turned to Missy.
"I think you should prepare yourself; Howard's not exactly a master magician…"
At that moment, Missy finally noticed Raj across the room. Her eyes lit up, and without hesitation, she stood up, interrupting Howard mid-trick.
"Raj! It's so good to see you!" she said, relieved, walking over to him.
Raj smiled widely, pleased to be her "savior."
"Hey, Missy, you look great." He glanced at her from head to toe with a smile.
When she stopped in front of him, Missy smiled back, taking in his appearance.
"You're looking good too, Raj. I love the jacket," she said, lightly touching his shoulder.
Raj winked at her, leaning in and whispering, "If you're being held hostage by them, blink twice for help."
Missy laughed, covering her mouth. "Maybe I am. You have no idea what I've had to listen to."
"Oh, I can imagine… must be quite the torture."
Missy shook her head, smiling again. "You have no idea."
Raj shrugged, "Don't worry. I'm here to rescue you."
Missy looked at Raj, crossing her arms and giving him a playful smile.
"I'll pretend the fact that you…"
She stepped closer to him and, with a subtle movement, lightly sniffed his jacket, raising an eyebrow.
"Dior Sauvage… and wait, Bleu de Chanel too?"
Raj raised his hands in surrender. "Guilty." He laughed.
Missy smiled back, shaking her head.
"Two colognes? And all this just to meet your friends… on a Tuesday night?"
Raj nodded in mock remorse, "Your Honor, I admit, while the evidence is overwhelming, the responsibility isn't entirely mine." He paused, looking at Missy. "You share some of the blame, being so charming."
Missy raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so it's my fault now, is it?"
"Exactly! See, I'm just a victim of circumstance, pulled into this by your presence… what else could I do but come prepared?"
Missy let out a genuine laugh.
Just then, Howard arrived and pointed at Raj. "Missy, don't fall for this guy's…"
Before he could finish, Leonard jumped in.
"… this imposter!" Leonard blurted out with a satisfied smirk.
Howard looked at Leonard, agreeing.
"Exactly! Imposter!"
"Hey, hey, hey! Let's take it easy with the accusations, alright? I'm no imposter."
The argument began between the three of them, with Howard and Leonard insisting that Raj was just "showing off," and Raj responding with sarcasm, until a clicking sound interrupted them.
It was the door opening, and Penny walked into the apartment.
"Okay… what's all the yelling about? I can hear you from down the hall!" she said, looking from one to the other.
Before anyone could respond, Penny noticed Missy and immediately understood the situation.
"Oh, never mind. I get it." She smiled and walked over to Missy, extending her hand to introduce herself.
"Hi, I'm Penny, I live across the hall. And you must be… Sheldon's sister?" Penny asked.
Missy smiled back, shaking Penny's hand.
"Yes, I'm Missy. Nice to meet you."
Penny glanced at the guys, who were still all silent, and then turned back to Missy with an understanding look.
"Want to escape this chaos? We can head to my apartment, girl talk."
"Yes, yes! Please!" Missy said, standing up quickly.
Penny motioned towards the door, and the two of them left together, leaving the guys in silence as they watched them go. The room was strangely quiet until the door to Penny's apartment softly clicked shut.
As soon as they were gone, Howard finally recovered his train of thought.
"Like I was saying… don't fall for this fraud!"
Leonard and Raj exchanged glances, and then the argument started up again, with the three of them throwing jabs and accusations.
Meanwhile, in the hallway, Missy and Penny walked side by side. Missy glanced back briefly, still hearing the distant murmurs from the apartment.
"Will they be okay?" Missy asked with a slight smile.
Penny shrugged.
"Oh, they love this. Arguing about who gets the last word. They're like kids sometimes."
Missy laughed. "Yeah, I'm starting to see that."
Penny opened the door to her apartment and gestured for Missy to step inside.
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A/N: Don't forget to leave your review of the novel if you haven't done so yet, it's extremely important for the novel and for me, and it won't cost you anything, will it? Pretty please… :3