[ It was of course, starting to dawn on him exactly how upset she was. Was this meant to be some form of self-inflicted punishment as well? It wasn't his place to ask, and he wasn't sure how much further he wanted to belabor the point. If it wasn't their fault, Sheryl surely didn't want to hear about it anyway. So, he decides to stand up after all. ]

I can tell that you just need some time. Sorry for disturbing you. Just one more thing I'd like to say.

[ Deep breath. ]

If you do want to take the blame for anything, don't do it alone. Blame me as well, and anyone else who may have lead to this.