044 Burn

Characters:Edward/Emily

Emily gently touched her shoulder, wincing as pain spread forth from the recent burn. She was sitting on a bench in the locker room, trying to figure out how she was going to remove her shirt. It hurt to lift her shoulder too high, but she didn't know how she was going to get her shirt off without doing just that. She turned around as she heard footsteps behind her.

Edward moved into the locker room, wearing only a gray undershirt and a pair of black pants. He moved over to his locker and stripped off his clothing. Emily sulked for a second, annoyed that he was flaunting his ability to get undressed. She jumped slightly as her shirt was suddenly pulled up. She looked back to see Edward behind her. She frowned at him and Edward sat down on the bench. He lifted up her shirt again and pulled it over her head while Emily kept her arms down. Edward then did the same with her bra, slipping it off for her.

She finally stopped him when his hands moved down to her belt. "I'm not crippled," she snapped. She stood up and removed her pants, tossing them into her locker. Emily looked back, realizing that Edward hadn't moved. "What?"

Edward stood and moved away, toward the showers. Emily just rolled her eyes and removed her underwear, grabbing up her other clothing and tossed them all in her locker. She moved into the showers and to one of the spaces across from Edward. She stared to wash up, being careful to avoid the patches of burned skin, almost wishing that the fuel rod had hit her directly rather than hitting the ground and splashing fire all over her. She'd rather have one patch to avoid than all the smaller ones.

Emily moved to wash her good arm, but flinched as her shoulder protested. A hand settled on her shoulder and she didn't have to look back to know it was Edward. He washed her shoulder, hand gently moving over her skin. Emily shifted, a bit uncomfortable. Although she and Edward had been in what they were calling a relationship for some time, they hadn't done anything intimate other than kiss. Yet here they were in the shower, Edward carefully washing the spots on her shoulder that were too painful to wash herself.

When he finished his hand moved away just as smoothly as it had arrived. The water washed her clean of the soap. When she turned off the water and moved out to the lockers again, Edward was sitting with a towel around his waist. He held out a fresh towel for her and she took it, sitting down on the bench. She dried herself off, having to dab at the burned areas. She wasn't surprised when, after having finished her burned side Edward pulled the towel from her hand and dried off her good side. Emily sulked but let him finish the task. When the towel finally moved away Emily spoke. "I'm not helpless."

"No you're not," Edward agreed. He wrapped the towel around her body and Emily allowed it. "You are hurt," he added as he tucked the corner of the towel into place. "You didn't need me to do that."

"No, I didn't," Emily admitted. She paused for a moment before looking back at her teammate. "Why are you doing it?" Edward just stared, silent. "Are you doing it because you're my partner, or because you feel like you owe me?" He answered by softly pressing his lips to hers for a moment. Emily furrowed her brow and frowned. "What does that mean?"

"It means I didn't do it for either of those reasons," Edward answered. Emily just continued to stare, not understanding. He kissed her again but she was still confused. "Is that not clear enough?"

Emily considered the action, trying to find meaning in it. She finally came to a conclusion that seemed to fit, but Edward could be hard to interpret. Luckily Edward was honest, so clarity was only a question away. "Are you saying you did it because you like me?"

"'Like' seems like a bit small of a word," Edward stated. He started to get dressed, glancing over toward Emily. "Do you need assistance getting dressed?" He glanced over toward the locker and then back to Emily, tilting his head to the side a bit, questioning why she hadn't gotten clothing out.

Emily eyes him, narrowing her gaze. "Are you saying that you love me? And that's why you're helping me?"

"Is it not the same as why you're allowing me to help you?" It was no secret that Emily was prideful, but she hadn't stopped him once. "Are you going to get dressed or do you plan on giving the others a show?" There was something disapproving to Edward's words but his voice held no emotion otherwise.

Emily turned toward her locker an opened it up. "Would you like it if I walked around naked?" Emily pulled out clothing from her locker and put it on the bench.

"You're questioning my sexual orientation and how physically attracted I am to you," Edward stated. He moved around the bench as he slipped on his shirt, moving to stand beside Emily. "Did I do something to cause you to bring those things into question?"

Emily grabbed her underwear and sat down on the bench. She slipped them on a bit stiffly. "Well you did just help me undress, shower, and dry off and you didn't seem to enjoy any of that." Emily stood as she finished sliding on her underwear.

"You're hurt. It seems inappropriate to make any sort of physical move when you're in such a condition." Edward grabbed her bra and Emily held her hands out. He slid it up her arms and over her head. He pulled the cloth down, the back of his hands running over her chest as he settled the cloth in place. "Why would I want to risk causing you more pain?"

Emily grabbed her pants and sat down again to slip them on. "But we've been together for months, and you've never touched me like you're physically interested." Emily pulled the pants up and stood, tugging them up the rest of the way. "I was just wondering if you were even interested in that sort of thing."

Edward picked up her shirt and she stuck her arms out. "I assure you I am. But the moment hasn't arrived." Emily frowned at him as he slipped the shirt up her arms. "We're happy as we are, and when the time comes we will take our relationship to the next level."

"I'm not asking for sex," Emily clarified before he slipped the shirt over her head. "I'm just talking about even putting a hand on my waist when we kiss. Putting an arm around my shoulder. You know, just normal physical contact."

Edward finished pulling her shirt down. "I didn't know that was appropriate," Edward admitted. "Noted. Is it appropriate when around the rest of the team?" Emily considered the question and nodded. Edward straightened her shirt, his hands resting on her waist as he leaned forward and kissed her. "As you wish," he said before removing his hands. He turned and moved out of the locker room, Emily trailing behind him.