On Sunday, the Coopers drove Sheldon and Missy to the Texas Children's Research Institute. Mike, keeping his end of the deal, headed over to Regina's place.
As for Meemaw, she had a major project of her own today: she was determined to teach the stiff and scholarly Dr. Sturgis how to actually drive a car.
Over at Regina's, Amy—Regina's smoking hot mom—showed an intense interest when she heard that her daughter and the rest of the "Bombshell Squad" wanted to learn musical instruments.
To support the girls' new hobby, she had gone out over the weekend and bought a small orchestra's worth of equipment, even clearing out a dedicated music room in the villa.
When Mike showed up at the door, the "hot mom" practically did a double-take.
Lately, between his constant interactions with the girls and his natural growth, Mike's charm level had skyrocketed. To a single woman living alone like Amy, he was essentially a walking nuclear strike of charisma.
"You know, I actually know a thing or two about instruments myself. If you'd like, I could give you some private lessons," Amy said, her voice dripping with subtext, once she learned why Mike was there.
Seeing her mother turning on the charm so shamelessly, Regina felt her face burning with embarrassment. "Mom!" she barked, half-angry and half-mortified.
"Alright, alright—I get it." Amy sighed dramatically as if her fun had been cut short, then smirked. "I'll leave you kids to it. Have fun!"
She shot Mike a lingering look and turned to sashay out of the music room.
But before Regina could breathe a sigh of relief, Amy paused at the door, tossed Mike a playful wink, and added, "Mike, if you need anything at all, don't be shy about coming to find me."
With that, she successfully left Mike feeling the heat of Regina's jealous stare.
To calm Regina down, Mike relied on his superhuman intellect to "speed-learn" several instruments on the spot. Once she was satisfied, he finally had time to share his "musical techniques"—everything from finger placement to rhythm—with the rest of the squad.
All in all, Mike had an... eventful and very busy day.
As evening fell, Mike beat a hasty retreat from the villa, pursued by Amy's meaningful smiles.
When he got home, he found Meemaw dressed to the nines, checking herself out in the full-length mirror.
"Mike, help me out here. How do I look?" Meemaw asked, sounding uncharacteristically unsure of herself.
"You look great, Connie. Seriously, you're glowing," Mike praised with a smile. Even though she was older, Meemaw still had more style and charm than people half her age.
"Thanks, sugar," Meemaw beamed. "Go ahead and head over to the Coopers' for dinner tonight. I've got plans with John."
"Got it. Have a great night!" Mike didn't pry, but he knew things were getting pretty serious between her and the professor.
After a quick shower, Mike walked over to the Cooper house.
"Mike! Guess what? I got a perfect score on my test today!" Missy shouted the second she saw him, eager to share her big win.
At the table, Mary and George were discussing the results from the Research Institute. It wasn't until today that they realized their little daughter possessed an incredibly high EQ (Emotional Intelligence).
Hearing Missy brag, Sheldon chimed in with his usual haughty tone. "I also got a perfect score on my intelligence test."
In Sheldon's world, IQ was obviously the superior metric. He certainly wasn't saying that because he had scored a big fat zero on the emotional awareness portion of the exam.
"A perfect score is a perfect score!" Missy snapped. She rarely got to outshine Sheldon in anything, and she wasn't about to let him rain on her parade.
Seeing a sibling debate brewing, Mary quickly cut in. "Alright, you're both geniuses. Now eat your dinner."
Even though she said it to both of them, her eyes were clearly lingering on her "Shelly."
"Hmph." Being as emotionally perceptive as she was, Missy caught the favoritism instantly. she turned her head away, pouting.
Mike saw the little girl's pride getting wounded and gave his head a small shake. He leaned in and whispered a few words of genuine praise in her ear, which instantly brought the smile back to her face.
---
Meanwhile, Meemaw was driving Dr. Sturgis toward the party.
The event John had invited her to was a high-society mixer filled with professors, scientists, and various "elite" members of academia.
Meemaw had never been to such a high-brow gathering. As they pulled up, she asked nervously, "John, are you sure I'll fit in? It's going to be a room full of the smartest people in the world."
"Nonsense, Connie. You're just as bright as anyone in there," Dr. Sturgis reassured her. "For instance, you have far more natural talent for operating a motor vehicle than I do."
It was true. After an entire day of lessons, John still couldn't grasp the mechanics of driving. To Meemaw, it seemed incredibly clumsy—after all, it was just driving. How hard could it be?
Thinking about the fact that even the brilliant Dr. Sturgis had things he was "stupid" at gave her a bit of a confidence boost.
However, once they stepped inside and she saw the guests chatting effortlessly about complex topics, she felt herself tightening up again.
John introduced her to several groups, but he quickly realized she was feeling out of place and didn't push her.
Feeling like a fish out of water, Meemaw retreated to a quiet corner and grabbed a drink to mask her awkwardness.
But Meemaw had a magnetic personality that was hard to hide, even in a corner.
A tall, distinguished-looking older man approached her. "Lovely lady, would you care to join me for a drink?"
Bored and looking for a distraction, Meemaw smiled and raised her glass. "I'd love to."
Up close, Dr. Linkletter found Meemaw even more charming. He took a sip of his drink and asked, "And what is your field of research, if I may ask?"
"Research?" Meemaw realized he'd mistaken her for a scholar. Not wanting to embarrass herself, she thought fast. "Oh, I've done extensive research on my grandson. I know he's very into science. You know, those things with the little balls all stuck together... protons or something?"
Dr. Linkletter had never met someone quite like Meemaw. He found her descriptive gestures and bluntness incredibly refreshing.
"You mean a molecular model?" Linkletter chuckled. "Yes, those 'balls' can be quite a headache."
"Exactly! You get it! Science is a total headache," Meemaw said, feeling like she'd found a kindred spirit. She launched into a full-blown rant about the absurdities of science.
After years of living next to Sheldon, she had a massive backlog of scientific grievances to air out.
Dr. Linkletter found her more and more fascinating by the minute, nodding along and laughing.
Before they knew it, the two were having the time of their lives.
Across the room, Dr. Sturgis finished greeting some old colleagues and turned around—only to realize his date was being "scouted" by the competition.
---
Your comments, reviews, and votes really help me out so much and they make me super motivated to keep working on this story! Thank you! Pat**on : Belamy20