#I cried like a baby multiple times reading the fourth book because of Stephen

[causeimanartist]

What is your favorite Thursday Murder Club member? Im particularly attached to Ron and Elizabeth.

Oooooooooh tough question because I honestly love them all but if I had to pick - it's between Ibrahim and Joyce!

[sophie-the-shipper]

Moving On

Summary: Penny and Leonard break up. One moves on, the other gets stuck in the past. What will happen? Word Count: 2155 Disclaimer: I don't own The Big Bang Theory or the characters, nor the song that was used as a background for the story. 'Moving On' by Kodaline, which was also used as a title for the story.

They didn't last long. On a cold winter afternoon, when the cold breeze made her chilly, she ran to her car with tears streaming down her face, almost freezing from the cold. She was the one that broke it off, not really accepting the fact someone cared and wanted to be with her. She was scared of hurting him in the long run, of doing something that would hurt them both deeply. But as soon as she left him, she was already hurt and regretful.

She didn't know where to go, home – a concept she no longer knew what it was – or anywhere else. She went to her apartment, but as soon as she entered, she only felt his presence. She got ready for work and went to her car. Driving around town for a while, she eventually passed The Cheesecake Factory. She entered it and said nothing to the people there. She wasn't interested in anyone's dates, boyfriends or other subjects she used to give a crap about.

Her shift ended quickly, him the only thing on her mind. She already missed him and, unlike any other moment in the near past, she wasn't missing him like those other times. Not those 'I miss you' but I'll see you at dinner tonight and give you a kiss. Not those 'I miss you' that was sweet. This 'I miss you' was messy, dirty, and awful. It was like one of them had died, and maybe it did. Her heart, it wasn't beating like it used to. It used to beat for him, in a weird way. He was the one thing that helped her go through those hard shifts that she needed so that she could pay rent. So that she could keep living near him.

But now, her heart was suffering because of what she did. It was all her fault and she knew. But she missed him. Terribly.

And so did he. He missed her. Desperately.

He had tears in his eyes. Aside from a few friends and an obnoxious roommate, she was all that kept him there. She was his armor against the bad in the world, what kept him grounded. She always made sure he had a place to land when he was done with the world inside his own head. She was his lifesaver. So, without thinking more than once, he wrote a letter explaining why he was leaving and apologizing for any inconvenience. Booking a ticket to go back to New Jersey, he saw his desktop photo: a picture of them. They were both smiling, they were happy in that picture. Soon after, the photo became cloudy.

Removing his glasses and pushing the tears aside, he changed the picture to his old one, a photo of Superman. Someone that had been brave enough to be someone else in order to save the world. A superhero, someone he wasn't.

With the ticket bought and some items on his bag, he leaves the apartment he had lived at for the last few years. He looked at her door just in front of his. If he closed his eyes, he could still remember the moment he got back from the North Pole, the way her eyes twinkled when she saw him, the hug, the way her body melted in his. He could still smell her perfume in the air if he thought long enough.

He opened his eyes, not being able to think about her anymore. It was hurting way to much.

He climbed down those stairs and entered his car, without looking back.

When she climbed up those stairs she was thinking of just getting inside her apartment, open a bottle of wine, drink it while watching Friends until she eventually fell asleep. She did not, at any moment, though she would have to go to his apartment.

She first heard the yelling at the beginning of the fourth flight of stairs. Thinking it was her crazy friend yelling at him because of the thermostat, she thought nothing of it. But by the time she arrived at the door, she saw it opening and two of her friends left. Her short friend with a Beatles-like haircut and her Indian non-speaking-to-women friend. They both looked at her with a disgusted face. She asked what was wrong, they didn't answer.

She entered the apartment only to see one of her best friends cry. It was unusual to see this, to out-of-character for him. She touched his shoulder as to warn him she was there and also to console him. He looked away from her and ran to his room. She didn't know what was happening. She stood looking at the bathroom door for a couple of moments until she looked around the room. Everything was in place, except for his laptop. Instead, there were a number of papers on top of the place it used to be the laptop. She noticed on with her name so she picked that one up. Opening it, she sat down at his chair, being one of the most comfortable she ever was at – without counting his bed or his lap.

Dear Penny,

I'm sorry I'm doing this, but I just can't stay here while seeing you every day. It pains me to do this because I'm leaving everything behind. I love you, and nothing will ever change that. But I can't stay there watching you be with other guys. I just can't.

I hope you can understand why I'm doing this. If you want me to explain better or simply talk from time to time, I don't mind. We can still be friends, even though we're not together. I promise to try and be in your life. I'll honestly try. I know this is a small letter, but I needed to just say sorry for leaving without talking about it directly and you know I'm not much of a person to talk face to face.

Love,

Leonard.

She cried when she finished reading the letter. Realizing the guys blamed her for his departure, she knew she couldn't just stay there. But she couldn't just go back to Nebraska. Sucking up her ego, she remained in that apartment building, waiting for him to come back home.

They spoke to each other. Every now and then, they would catch up, they would talk about his work and her auditions. They wouldn't mention him leaving or their break up. It would just open old wounds, and none of them needed that.

They wouldn't talk about things like 'I have a date tonight', or 'I might be engaged by the end of this week'.

It had taken them two years, but the dreaded day arrived. It was a warm autumn afternoon on the day of their last text. Penny still remembers the text, she holds down to that text with everything she had.

It was a simple, uncomplicated text, unlike their relationship. It was a simple, perfect, Good Night.

It was night for him, after all. She didn't respond, she didn't like to, she always felt like it was like saying goodbye. And it had been.

For the next two decades, they didn't speak. She knew he got married through Sheldon, who got the invitation through the mail. He attended it with Amy, his girlfriend-that-wasn't-just-a-friend-anymore. Howard went with Bernadette that finally agreed to be his girlfriend. Raj invited her, but it was just weird to be at your ex's wedding.

She got all the details of his wife later, through Amy and Bernadette. She was short, like him, didn't wear glasses and had a Ph.D. in something she couldn't for the life of her remember. She also loved his nerdy things and would go to comic book stores and buy more comics than him. They started a collection together, making sure they would spend less money on those things. She was everything she hadn't been, and he was probably happy with her.

That was two years after his farewell from the building and her life. Her one shot of happiness left that day and was now married.

Only a year later she discovered, through Sheldon once again, that he was going to be a father.

She was happy for him, to discover he had moved on.

A few months later, a Ryan Stephen Hofstadter welcomed the world. She had known at least one of his kids would be named after a scientist and he had chosen Stephen Hawking. But it should've been her to have a child named after a scientist. It should've been her, but she was stupid and allowed him to go.

She smiled at the picture Bernadette had shown her of baby Ryan, with his black hair, a little curly, and his big brown eyes.

He looked like a miniature Leonard. Which made her miss him even more and hate her even deeper.

After twenty years since his separation from her life and three kids later, his wife got sick. She died a few years later, not being able to survive the illness anymore. By that time, their youngest was already in college so Leonard moved back. He stayed with his best friend and his wife and children for a few weeks until he moved into his own place. She hadn't seen him yet. She didn't move on from their breakup, was only with people to get away from the pain she was constantly feeling in her heart. She missed him and never forgot him.

And as she walked that street, she swore to see him, looking at a menu. Getting closer and closer, she realized it was him. He had grey hair and a few wrinkles but it was still him. His hand was probably warm enough to heat hers, in that cold spring morning. It was an unusual day, especially for the season, they were in. She had on multiple layers of clothes and upon seeing him, she longed for his warm skin against hers, hoping he was still the same person. But he probably wasn't anymore, especially after what had happened to his wife. His partner in life. The one that should've been her.

Touching his shoulder for him to pay attention to her, he looked at her. She had aged amazingly, like a fine wine that is correctly bottled and stored. He smiled, and she smiled back. He hugged her, making him remember his departure all those decades ago when he tried to forget about her. It took him a year to even consider going out. Six months later he found someone perfect for him. She was also trying to forget about someone, escape the claws of love. They fell for each other, hard, and it was soon that they got married and had kids. They didn't want to waste time, and so they didn't.

She had made sure he was happy after her passing. Maybe that meant talking to her. That would probably make him happy. He felt a warm feeling in his chest, probably joy. He wasn't sure about what it was. But her smile was inviting, and it irradiated happiness.

He invited her for coffee, and opened the door to her, making him remember doing that to his wife. Sadness passed over his features, but he tried to put those feelings aside.

They sat down near the window, watching the city life outside. When they were young, they would both be living in that city, and be a part of that life. But now, as they grew old, they were just people watching others live the life they already had.

They didn't talk, as the waitress gave them their coffees. They just smiled and toasted with their warm cups of coffee. Their cold throat appreciated the warm feeling of the coffee and their cold hands were loving the feeling of heat irradiating from the coffee.

Their eyes eventually crossed paths. A small smile appeared on their faces. He was the first to speak just like their first encounter. That awkward first encounter. The moment he had probably fallen in love with her. His letter, given to her so long ago, it seemed on another lifetime, had said he would always love her, no matter what. Did he mean it? Did he still love her? God knew she loved him more than anything in the world. Would they have a second chance at love? Or would she still be scared? She remembers all the night she was scared and didn't have his arms around her, protecting her from the horrors of the world. He was probably protecting the other woman, the one he loved unconditionally for two decades. She looked at him and knew. They would be okay. And that was what mattered.

"So, how have you been?" He said as that little smile played on his lips.

That goodnight, she realized, hadn't been a goodbye. Just a see you later.

The End

[ethanalter]

The heartwarming story behind the 'Wonder' moment that made director Stephen Chbosky cry

The cast of Wonder. (Photo: Dale Robinette/Lionsgate)

Heading into its third weekend nestled comfortably among the top box-office grossers, Lionsgate’s surprise hit Wonder proves that moviegoers are never too old — or too young — for a good tearjerker. And viewers are freely fessing up about tearing up on Twitter, where even acclaimed novelist John Green — who has some experience making other people cry as the author of The Fault in Our Stars — has credited Wonder for making him all verklempt.

Congratulations on Wonder! Cried through the whole beautiful thing. The movie honors its source material so profoundly. People will be watching it for decades.

— John Green (@johngreen) November 26, 2017

Did I cry for the entire hour and 53 minutes of #Wonder? Yes I absolutely did.

— Sydney Spiegel (@sydneycherie) November 26, 2017

Just saw #Wonder, which is the perfect version of the movie that it is. I cried a lot. Julia is great. Be nice to people.

— Kevin Fallon (@kpfallon) December 2, 2017

Like the best tearjerkers, Wonder­ — which follows a year in the life of the Pullman family, whose youngest member, Auggie (Jacob Tremblay), has a rare facial deformity — earns its tears honestly, with low-key but unabashedly emotional storytelling that makes room for multiple cry points. I’ve seen the film twice now, and each time the sequence that gets me is a performance of Our Town starring Auggie’s older sister, Via (Izabela Vidovic). Technically, Via’s estranged friend Miranda (Danielle Rose Russell) is the star of that high school production, but at the last minute Miranda fakes an illness so that understudy Via can step into the spotlight in the pivotal role of Emily while her parents, Isabel and Nate (Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson), watch. Besides reminding me of my own theater nerd days (not to mention my absolute favorite episode of The Wonder Years), the scene really loosens the proverbial dam when Via delivers Emily’s beautiful beyond-the-grave monologue, as Isabel’s own memories drift back to her daughter’s fourth birthday party. Thornton Wilder’s words plus a visual reminder of the fleetingness of childhood while sitting in the theater next to my own 10-year-old? Forget it — instant waterworks.

As it turns out, the Our Town sequence is Wonder director Stephen Chbosky’s main cry point as well. “I just love the themes of it — of appreciating what you have and embracing life,” he told Yahoo Entertainment in a recent interview, adding that the play was his high school’s senior-year production. “I couldn’t think of a better way to illustrate that than by having Isabel realize that the last 10 years of her daughter’s life had just vanished for her because she was so focused on Auggie. I’ve been moved by how many mothers have come up to me, after seeing the movie, and singled out that moment as a favorite of theirs.”

Director Stephen Chbosky on the set of Wonder. (Photo: Dale Robinette/Lionsgate)

Chbosky went on to reveal that he has his own highly personal reasons for tearing up when Via delivers the closing monologue: That’s his daughter who plays the young Via in Isabel’s flashback. “It’s very personal,” he says, getting audibly emotional while explaining that the cameo came about because shooting commitments kept him from attending her fourth birthday party. “That was heartbreaking for me. When they came to visit me in Vancouver [where Wonder was shot], I was able to stage the birthday that I missed. So I’ll always cry at that point, because I get to say I’ve never missed one of my daughter’s birthdays.”

Per Chbosky’s memories, it sounds as if his daughter’s day on set was more of a gift for him than it was for her or, for that matter, her famous scene partner. “Julia joked, ‘I’ve never been your second-favorite actor on set before, and I don’t know if I like it,'” the director says of watching the Erin Brokovich star play mom to his little girl. “And it was true! Here’s this international icon, and all I’m doing is looking at my kid saying, ‘You’re so good! You’re doing so well.'” At the time, his daughter wasn’t phased by all the attention or having to deliver her one line: “I wish for a baby brother.” In fact, she didn’t even remember shooting the scene when she saw the completed film recently. “She’s 5 now, and I brought her to the premiere. She kind of remembered all the men and the lights, but she didn’t know who Julia Roberts was. She sat through the whole movie and wants to see it again. I thought, ‘Wow, if we’ve got the 5-year-olds, we’ve got something.”

As the box office has borne out, Wonder‘s appeal really does span age demographics, from 5 to 85. That makes it an increasing rarity on the Hollywood landscape: a live-action, PG-rated film that parents can enjoy as much as, if not more than, their kids. It’s also a faithful translation of a beloved novel that avoids angering fans with sizable changes or annoying them by simply being a book-on-film. Chbosky is two for two in that regard; his first feature, 2012’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower, adapted from his own 1999 novel, was also praised for retaining what people loved about the book without slavishly re-creating every detail. Asked if there’s any particular secret behind a successful adaptation, the writer-director says he personally focuses a lot of attention on the casting process. “The author might have four chapters to introduce a character, but the filmmaker has five seconds, so the person had better be perfect for the part. Also, you’re always looking for the picture that’s worth a thousand words.” Like, say, the picture of a 4-year-old celebrating her birthday for a second time while her proud father looks on.

Wonder is playing in theaters now.

Read more from Yahoo Entertainment:

How all those ‘Star Wars’ cameos wound up in surprise box-office hit ‘Wonder’

‘Wonder’ 101: Julia Roberts, Owen Wilson, and cast explain story behind new charming new movie