Trust me, he's not suffering. I promise I'll find a nice doggy daycare so he can play with other puppies while I'm busy.
That's kind of what Richie said, too. I know I try to fix things a lot, and I'm trying to back off and be better when you ask me to. I just feel like I can't help it? I don't want you to hurt, and I know that's stupid and impossible, but it's what it is. It scares me a little when you shut down like that. Even though you told me you needed my space, I was afraid you'd come back from that feeling resentful or having changed your mind about us.