"I made it quite clear to them that I would be here for them," Ernie initially felt defensive at the thought that Jasper initially had put out.
"I've never seen them fight like that before though," Ernie said with a resigned sigh. "I was surprised. It was wrong for me to think that I could just get them to fix it right away and to get on with life. It was mostly my fault to begin with though." And perhaps he was worried about having to choose between them--he never did want it to get to that. He took a sip of his tea in an effort to clear up the lump that sat in his throat.