Ted stepped into Jamie’s tiny apartment and closed the door.  He quickly scanned the place looking for clues to see if he would recognize any parts of the girl that he once knew.  It was quite a mess, toys and textbooks everywhere.  There were a few photos of Sam and her but none of Luke anywhere as far he could see.  He knew she would have been so much happier with him.  He would have done everything he could for her and to make her happy.  Didn’t she know that?

            “Where are the antiseptic cream and the ointment for the burns?”

            “It’s in the bathroom behind the mirror.  Go down that hall, to your right.”

            “Ah, there it is.”  He came back and placed some books on the coffee table to sit next to her. 

            “Okay, let me take a look.”  Ted lifted her shirt over her head and instructed her to lie on her belly.  The burns made him cringe as if he was the one in pain.

            Yet he was fully aware of the electrifying tension between them.  Jamie was getting tense and shifted uncomfortably a few times.  His heart was racing, his blistered hands weren’t too steady holding the bottle of ointment and another part of his body was responding in this awkward moment.  He didn’t want to be aroused and he didn’t want her to know what she was doing to him, tearing his insides apart. 

            It’s just a guy thing he told himself.  My response to her doesn’t mean anything.  I don’t care about her anymore after all these years.  A small nagging voice in his head seems to be saying otherwise.

            The bra strap in her back seems to be digging into her burns and scrapping the skin.  He unhooked it for her.  “Sorry. Didn’t want that to dig into your skin.”  This situation was dangling in dangerous territory.  He needed to focus on applying the ointment and leaving as soon as possible.  He didn’t want to get close to Jamie again, not even if it was just a one-night stand.  He didn’t want to risk his heart a second time.  Ted had never dated much in the last ten years because he couldn’t get himself to get that close to anyone like he did with her. 

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