Robin halted outside the door to his and Marian's apartment, wishing he did not have to do this, that the whole morning had never happened, or at least that it was already far behind them. Quickly, he retracted those wishes, for fear that something was lurking in this world, ready to grant careless thoughts such as those, in the worst way it could find.
Still, he had never been very good at apologizing, but he needed to do it for the second time now. And he almost feared this conversation more than the last one, since he had no idea if Marian would forgive him. He would not blame her if she chose not to, as he would not have blamed Much a few minutes earlier. However, whereas he could almost count on Much's pardon, he had no notion about hers. He had said worse things to his friend in the past (not that that excused his behavior today), but never had he lost his head toward Marian like that.
Hesitantly, he turned the handle and went inside, stopping to close the door behind him and lean his unused bow back in its place. That was when he heard a small noise from the living room-- it was muffled, but he recognized the sound. Marian was crying. And it was his fault.
Over the years, some situations had led Robin to do things he detested, and he had detested himself for doing them. Never had he hated himself so thoroughly, though, than when he walked into the room and saw her bent over, weeping, on the couch.
His initial instinct was to take her into his arms, to hold her and soothe her. But that would give him a degree of comfort, as well, and he did not deserve it; nor did he deserve to do any of that. He forfeited that right when he hurt her. Yet, there were no words he could offer that would begin to be adequate. At a loss for anything else to do, he crossed the room and went to his knees beside her, bowing his head in supplication and trying to fight the dampness in his eyes, since that was still another thing he did not deserve.
Regardless of how trite it would sound, he owed her an apology. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I'm so very, very sorry."