Chapter 134: The Four-Man Bet
When Ethan pushed open the apartment door, Sheldon, Raj, and Howard were all in the living room.
Sheldon sat upright at his computer desk with perfect posture, staring seriously at the screen while rapidly typing away at the keyboard.
Meanwhile, Raj and Howard were sitting on the couch with a laptop open on the coffee table in front of them, both wearing the exact same fascinated expression as if they were watching something extremely important.
Ethan tossed his keys aside and yawned.
"Where's Leonard?"
Howard didn't even look up.
"Out on a date with Penny."
"What?"
Ethan instantly became more awake.
"Tonight's the date already?"
"Yes," Raj replied while pointing at the laptop screen.
"Ethan, come look at this."
Ethan walked over to the couch and looked down—
only to discover a live surveillance feed of the apartment hallway displayed on the screen.
"…You installed a camera in the hallway?" Ethan asked in disbelief.
"Of course!" Howard answered proudly.
"How else are we supposed to conduct direct, measurable observation of the date's outcome?"
Ethan: "..."
"So, Ethan," Howard said excitedly while rubbing his hands together, "want to place a bet?"
"Raj and I are both betting Leonard has absolutely zero chance of going back to Penny's apartment tonight."
"And if you want to bet on Leonard," Raj added immediately, "we're willing to offer very generous odds."
Ethan looked at both of them and smiled.
"Sorry. I actually agree with you."
The disappointment on their faces was immediate.
"But," Ethan added casually, "I am willing to make a different bet."
Howard's eyes lit up instantly.
"What kind of bet?"
"Leonard and Penny are eventually going to end up together."
"Hold on." Howard narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"What exactly do you mean by 'together'?"
"Dating together?"
"Sleeping together?"
"Or that kind of 'temporarily together until they break up the next morning' situation?"
Ethan thought for a moment before answering very seriously:
"Dating. Marriage. Kids."
"Whoa—"
Raj and Howard inhaled sharply at the exact same time.
At that moment, Sheldon finally turned around from his computer.
"Wait."
He spoke calmly.
"Was that one bet… or a compound bet involving three separate outcomes?"
Ethan blinked, clearly not expecting Sheldon to join the discussion.
"Sheldon, you're interested too? Want in on the bet?"
"I am completely uninterested," Sheldon immediately denied.
"I am merely helping clarify the structural rules of the wager."
He folded his hands neatly and continued in a perfectly analytical tone:
"A proper bet requires rigorous and objective victory conditions."
"If this is a single bet, then the success criteria are: dating, marriage, and childbirth—all completed."
He paused briefly.
"Allow me to remind you, Ethan: failure to complete any one of those conditions results in total loss."
Ethan thought seriously about it.
"…Alright, maybe the kids part is too much."
He compromised slightly.
"How about this instead?"
"Dating and marriage become two separate bets."
"What do you think?"
"And what are the failure conditions?" Sheldon immediately pressed.
"There cannot be unlimited time extensions."
Ethan thought back for a moment.
"Alright. Starting from now—if they don't start dating within two years, I lose one round."
"And if either of them marries someone else first, I lose another."
"What's the actual wager?" Raj asked curiously.
Howard answered before Ethan could speak.
"If you lose, you have to help us get a girlfriend."
Ethan: "..."
He sighed.
"How about this instead?"
"For every bet, the loser has to help the winner with the thing they're personally best at."
Then he looked at Raj.
"For example, if you discover a new asteroid someday, maybe you'll have to name it after me."
"Okay! Deal." Raj agreed instantly.
Howard nodded.
"That doesn't conflict with my version at all."
Ethan shook hands with both Raj and Howard solemnly, officially sealing the bet.
Then he turned toward Sheldon.
"What about you, Sheldon? Want in?"
Sheldon calmly replied,
"As I stated earlier, I have absolutely no interest in this."
"So you don't believe in Leonard?"
"I do not."
"But that has no effect on my lack of interest."
"..."
Ethan thought for a second.
"Come on, think about it."
"If you win, you can require me to accompany you during important trips as your personal medical consultant."
"Imagine going to Sweden to receive the Nobel Prize without a healthcare advisor. What if something happens?"
Sheldon considered the proposal with complete seriousness for three full seconds.
"Good point."
Then he stood up and shook Ethan's hand.
Inside, Ethan was absolutely ecstatic.
Because unlike the others, he already knew the future.
Which basically meant—
he had just earned six free wishes.
He forcibly suppressed his excitement and decided not to go sleep just yet.
Maybe tonight's the night Leonard finally figures things out.
Maybe my little butterfly effect has already started.
He stared at the laptop screen on the coffee table for a while before suddenly admiring it aloud.
"This camera quality is insane."
"Howard, where the hell did you buy this thing?"
"Didn't buy it," Howard said proudly.
"Borrowed it."
"This is actually a backup camera from a NASA Mars rover."
Ethan stared at him in shock.
"…They actually let you borrow that?"
Howard scoffed.
"Of course not."
"I borrowed it the creative way."
He shrugged casually.
"A million-dollar camera."
"Ten-dollar lock."
Ethan was speechless.
Just then, sound came from the laptop.
"Shhh—"
Leonard and Penny appeared in one corner of the hallway footage.
Leonard was explaining something seriously.
"What you're eating technically isn't real yogurt because it doesn't contain enough active lactobacillus cultures—"
Penny scooped another spoonful into her mouth.
"Oh wow," she said flatly. "Fascinating."
Leonard continued enthusiastically.
"And it's not actually pink either, because it doesn't contain real berry particles—"
Penny looked at him.
"Uh-huh. But that still doesn't answer my question."
"What question?"
Penny blinked.
"I asked if you wanted some."
Leonard immediately shook his head.
"Oh, no thanks. I'm lactose intolerant."
"If I eat it, I'll fart."
"..."
"Got it."
Penny nodded slowly.
"…Well then. Goodnight."
Leonard leaned forward and kissed her.
And Penny didn't pull away.
Watching the screen, Ethan couldn't stop himself from pumping a fist.
This round—
he might have already won one bet.
Then Leonard suddenly noticed the hidden camera overhead.
His expression changed slightly as he slowly guided Penny out of the camera's field of view.
The two separated.
Penny looked confused.
"What are you doing?"
Leonard scratched his head awkwardly.
"Oh… there was a draft over there."
Penny glanced around.
"I don't feel any wind."
Leonard gently held her shoulders.
"Maybe we should go to… your apartment…"
Penny stepped back slightly.
"I think maybe we shouldn't rush things."
Leonard immediately panicked.
"No! I didn't mean we should go there and rush into… stuff."
Penny smiled lightly.
"I know that's not what you meant."
"It's just… this is our first date."
Leonard nodded rapidly.
"Right. Totally fine."
"We can just think about where to go next time."
"And what time we should leave."
"Then if we divide distance by time, we can calculate the speed."
Penny thought about that for a second.
"…Or we could just figure it out later."
Leonard blinked.
"That… might also work."
Penny smiled.
"Goodnight, Leonard."
"Goodnight," Leonard replied softly.