The holidays came and went. After that night at Jen's apartment, Garret let her set the pace. Honestly there wasn't much of a pace to set. He couldn't even call what was going on between the two of them a relationship. It seemed that whatever progress was made before that night had now taken two steps back. He noticed how uncomfortable she was around him and would decline any invitation to have dinner with him.

Slowly after some time, things went back to a comfortable routine. They would have dinner, maybe go to a movie or a jazz club…she let her guard down again and he could see it. Although at times when he looked in her eyes he could see a sadness that puzzled him.

Jen never said a word, but she began to find her feelings for Garret changing. Her heart would skip a beat when he walked into a room…her cheeks would grow red if he brushed past her. She knew…she knew she was falling in love…at least that's what she thought it was…never having really experienced it before. As much as her past was in Ohio, it still had a hold over her to this day and so she made sure to keep those feelings she had for Garret buried deep.

What she didn't realize was that the present and the past were about to collide forcing the upper hand.


The day started out slow and didn't show any signs of picking up. Jen roamed the halls towards Autopsy 1 where she knew Jordan and Nigel were working. Never one to wish for a death, she secretly did right now…something interesting to make the day go faster. Even though it was almost noon, she thought it took an eternity to even get to that point.

Opening the doors to Autopsy 1 she saw the pair deep in discussion.

"Hey guys…need an extra pair of hands." She moved closer to the table and noticed the body of a young girl…maybe just under 13.

"Hello luv!" Nigel gave her his trademark smile. "I don't know about Jordan, but I can always use an extra pair of hands."

Jen blushed and then turned to look at Jordan. "What have you got?"

Jordan pointed to the bruising on the young girl's neck. "Sarah Miller…13 years old…found in an alley two blocks from her home. She was choked to death, but unfortunately that's not the worst of it. There are large amounts of bruising all over her body and it looks as though shortly before she died she was engaged in sexual activity…quite possibly she was raped."

Jen's eyes shot up to look at Jordan and then back down at the young girl. She didn't even hear what else Jordan had to say. Staring at the body, images flooded her mind and she heard a loud ringing in her ears. A hand touched her arm…causing her to jump back and let out a small scream.

"Hey luv…you ok?"

Jen swallowed hard and looked back and forth between the two. "I…uh…I just remembered that I have something to take care of." Her eyes darted back down to the body. "I…I need to go." Stumbling out of the autopsy room, she made her way to the door leading up to the roof and disappeared.

A half-hour later Nigel found her still there…staring out over the city of Boston.

"I've been looking for you everywhere luv…wanna tell me what's wrong?" He looked at her face and could see she had been crying.

"There's nothing to talk about." She kept her gaze straight ahead.

"Come on luv…something upset you…"

"Nigel…please…just drop it." This time she turned to face him…her blue eyes pleading with him. She knew he meant well…this was something however he couldn't help with.

"Alright, if that's what you want." He took her hand into his and gave it a tight squeeze. "But…if you need to talk…I'm here."

Jen gave him a smile and watched as he turned back towards the door. A few minutes later she returned to her office and was thankful when a call came in on a homicide. Not thankful however that it meant someone was dead…thankful instead that she could get out of the morgue and her mind on something else.

Hours later she returned to the morgue. Emotionally tired…all she wanted to do was gather her things and go home. Walking in her office, she didn't realize anyone was there until they spoke.

"I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have to track you down myself."

"God!" She jumped at the voice and stared in the direction from which it came.

"No…Howard or Dr. Stiles will do." He smiled and leaned back in the couch.

"What brings you by?" She licked her lips nervously and took in a deep breath…she had a feeling she already knew the answer.

"Well…I heard you ran out of an autopsy this morning…" He watched as she thumbed through some papers…clearly trying to avoid him.

"Word travels fast around here, besides it wasn't my autopsy…things were slow and I went to see if Jordan needed help."

He eyed her curiously, "but you left upset…appears to me you still are."

"It appears to me that some people need to mind their own business." She hadn't meant for it to come out the way it did, but she wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone…especially with the resident shrink.

Stiles got up from the couch and moved closer…only the desk separated them now. "I'm only here if you want to talk. Whether you realize it or not, people around here care about you."

The last part of what he said made her stop what she was doing. She felt her eyes begin to mist over and quickly blinked it away. "There is nothing to talk about." Her eyes met his.

Placing his hands on the desk, he leaned in. "What was it about that autopsy Jen? Why are you so upset about?"

Jen slammed the folder she had been holding down on the desk, startling them both. Her eyes misted over. "I can't…I can't talk about this now." She turned away and looked out the window.

"Ok…when is your next day off?"

She whirled around to look at him. "Excuse me?"

"If you can't talk now…then when is your next day off?"

"Tomorrow…" she took in a deep breathe, "…my day off is tomorrow."

"Good!" Stiles made his way to the door. "I'll expect to see you tomorrow in my office at 10:00 a.m." With that he left her alone…not even giving her a chance to protest.