Penny was driving, with Sheldon and Ethan in the car.
At Sheldon's strong insistence, he naturally occupied the passenger seat, leaving Ethan to sit in the back.
Penny glared at Ethan through the rearview mirror, her eyes clearly asking, "Why are you sitting in the back?"
Ethan spread his hands, innocently mouthing, "I can't help it."
Ethan couldn't help but ask, "Sheldon, didn't you insist on sitting in the back when you were a kid? I remember you saying—'the back seat has the highest survival rate in a car accident'."
Sheldon immediately launched into a scientific explanation: "That was back in the days when airbag technology wasn't perfect. Modern cars have dual front airbags, side airbags, automatic braking systems... and sitting in the front allows me to issue correct commands at critical moments, theoretically increasing the survival rate of everyone in the car."
Ethan sighed, "Sounds like you just want to give orders and enjoy the process of directing others."
Sheldon replied righteously, "Proactive intervention and control of chaos are higher-level safety strategies."
"Alright," Ethan leaned back in his seat, "I'll be responsible for praying. I think it will be more effective."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As Penny drove, she habitually glanced in the rearview mirror, skipping over Sheldon in the passenger seat, her gaze landing directly on Ethan:
"Ethan, why didn't you go to work today? You look a bit down."
Ethan rubbed his throbbing temples, swollen from a sleepless night, and smiled helplessly: "Recently I've been thinking about some... life direction issues, which has turned my days and nights upside down, and I'm in a really bad state."
"Life direction?" Penny raised an eyebrow, asking curiously as she drove onto the main road, "Sounds pretty serious."
"Not that serious," Ethan deliberated his words, trying to sound convincing, "It's just that I feel like I'm searching for something... more solid, an inner support. But the more I try to grasp it, the more I feel it slipping away."
The vague tenets of the Holy Light flashed through his mind, and he couldn't help but sigh.
Penny nodded knowingly, saying with the tone of someone who'd been there, "Oh, I get it! Like when I wanted to get that beer brand, GG. I thought I was perfect for it in every way, but that bald agent wouldn't even look at me. Sometimes things are just like that, there's no rhyme or reason."
Ethan was amused by the apt analogy: "Yes, that's pretty much the feeling! You clearly feel you've worked hard enough, been firm enough, but it still doesn't work out." He murmured to himself, "Respect, compassion, perseverance... I think I've done all of that."
"What?" Penny didn't hear clearly.
"Nothing," Ethan shook his head and changed the subject, "What about you, why do you have time to go shopping today?"
"I took a compensatory day off. If I don't get out and get some fresh air, I'm going to go crazy," she replied.
Sheldon interjected, announcing, "I am on vacation because I refuse to yield to mediocrity."
Ethan said, "Translated, that means he got fired."
Sheldon corrected, "Theoretically, physicists don't get 'fired'... however, you are correct."
"Maybe it's a good thing," Penny tried to comfort him, "I believe when one door closes, another always opens."
Sheldon: "No. It's not..."
The next few minutes completely devolved into Sheldon's scientific lecture on "doors and relays, sensors, air pressure."
Ethan and Penny exchanged an "here we go again" look, tacitly choosing silence until Sheldon stopped on his own.
After the air quieted, Ethan couldn't help but lean forward, closer to the driver's seat, and said, "Seriously, your driving skills are much better than mine, being able to stay calm while driving with Sheldon as background noise."
Penny, hearing this, proudly raised an eyebrow and replied, "Honey, this is just a beginner's test in my driving career. You haven't seen me driving while with my boyfriend in the passenger seat... uh, never mind."
Ethan looked at Penny with a surprised,
And Penny had a look of
Sheldon couldn't help but ask, "Doing what with your boyfriend?"
"Chatting with my boyfriend! Sheldon, just chatting."
The car merged into traffic, and Sheldon suddenly grabbed his seatbelt.
"Slow down! Please slow down! You're not maintaining a safe distance!"
Penny: "Yes, I am!"
Sheldon: "Even if this car weighs 4000 pounds, I'm 140 pounds, Ethan is 140 pounds, and you're 120 pounds—"
"120?" Penny's voice immediately rose half a tone.
Ethan immediately patted Sheldon's arm: "Hey! Sheldon, if you value your life, don't continue that calculation!"
He turned to Penny, his tone sincere, "Don't listen to his nonsense, Penny, you look like you're only 110 pounds at most, and your figure is so sexy, it's absolutely fantastic."
Penny glanced at Ethan, her mood slightly improved, and she snorted at Sheldon next to her.
Sheldon was a bit puzzled but continued to calculate: "So let's say the total weight is 4400 pounds..."
Ethan interrupted, "Wow, look! They're building a new mini-golf course!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At the supermarket, Sheldon was immersed in his "ordinary person observation mode."
While he was giving a scientific explanation about whether a tomato is a fruit or a vegetable, Penny and Ethan pushed the cart and fell slightly behind.
"So," Penny continued their previous conversation as she browsed the shelves, "have you found any clues about that 'support point' you can't grasp?"
Ethan, pushing the shopping cart, still looked a bit lost: "I don't know either. Maybe I'm trying too hard? Or going in the wrong direction? It's like... like you're desperately trying to play a role well, but you just can't find the feeling." He gave a self-deprecating laugh, "Saying all this feels pretty silly."
"Not at all," Penny stopped and looked at him seriously, "Everyone is looking for their place and their strength.
Like me, I want to be an actress, and I don't know how many times I've been rejected.
Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and wonder if I'm even capable.
But the next day, I tell myself—it doesn't hurt to try again."
She shrugged, "Maybe the process of searching is the meaning? I don't know."
Ethan felt a slight stir in his heart.
"Thank you, Penny," he said sincerely, "Sometimes talking to someone helps me get out of my rut a little."
"You're always welcome," Penny smiled, gently nudging him with her elbow, "After all, we're in the 'Struggle Alliance' in the real World, we have to cheer each other on and fight against those..."
She gestured with her chin towards Sheldon, who was meticulously examining a tomato, "...out-of-touch guys."
Not long after, Sheldon exclaimed again, "Most of these vitamins you buy will be excreted in your urine. You're spending money on expensive urine ingredients."
Penny was too tired to be angry, giving Ethan a "see?" look. Ethan returned an "I understand" look.
And when Sheldon began to seriously discuss Penny's "physiological cycle and procurement optimization" and asked if it was regular, the situation completely spiraled out of control.
Penny's face instantly flushed, and she glared furiously at Sheldon.
Ethan reacted extremely quickly this time, immediately stepping forward to block Penny and Sheldon, and sternly said to Sheldon:
"Sheldon! Stop at once! This is an extremely private and impolite topic! Do not ask any more questions!"
Sheldon felt innocent: "But I just—"
"Stop," Ethan's tone was firm.
Then he turned and softly said to Penny, whose chest was heaving with anger, "Don't be angry, Penny, let's go, don't mind him."
He took the shopping cart from Penny's hand and, while doing so, cast a Healing Spell on Penny.
Penny shot a fierce glare at Sheldon, who was completely oblivious, then took a deep breath and nodded at Ethan: "Thank you, Ethan. Let's go check out." She said, then turned and walked towards the checkout counter.
Sheldon, behind them, looked at Penny's retreating back and seemed to finally realize the situation was bad: "Okay, no warehouse store."
"But we're still going mini-golfing together, right?"
Ethan turned back, gave him a "you're hopeless" look, didn't answer, and quickly followed Penny.
He looked at Penny's still tense profile and whispered comfortingly, "Hey, don't let this spoil your mood. How about I treat you to a coffee later? Thanks for driving us out today and putting up with so much."
Penny's expression finally softened, and she let out a breath: "Alright, for the sake of coffee."
She glanced at Ethan, intending to continue complaining, but suddenly felt much lighter. The suffocating feeling in her chest inexplicably dissipated, and even her earlier anger lessened.
She paused, "Strange... I suddenly feel much better."
"It's good that you're not angry, we have to look out for each other," Ethan smiled.