The hesitation and nervousness in her eyes quickly changed to worry. "Fr-friends? But..." Romilda frowned and shifted on her feet, feeling the rocks crunch under her shoes. "I told you. I am your friend. But, well, I've been hoping that you wanted to be more than my friend. I mean, I know you've gone through a lot." She started speaking faster, running her words together as everything she had been thinking since he left started pouring out.
"I know you don't know me very well, but I could help you. Or even be there to listen? And I was so angry when you left because I promise I wasn't going to hurt you. And I meant that. And you didn't even warn me and I had to find out from a letter and I wouldn't have tried to stop you if you had explained it to me and I did like you and I still do, but I don't want you to leave again and I'm scared that you will." Romilda looked down at her feet, feeling horribly guilty for making this about her when it wasn't about her at all. She stared at her shoes, not wanting to look at him in case he had decided she was too much of a silly girl to bother with.