Hey.

[He steps inward, to wrap his arms around her and giving her a firm hug before stepping back again and letting his hands fall on her shoulders.]

I'll talk to him. I'm not interested in losing a friend either, we have a lot of good memories together. I just didn't think he'd be so angry with me about it. Maybe he thinks I'm going to hurt you, or get you into trouble...

[His voice trails off, because they're all in trouble, when he thinks about it. But not because of him.]

Anyway, I get where he's coming from, he's just looking out for you after all. I just think he's being a little too overprotective, given his own involvement with me and my family. But I can't blame him, either. Try not to worry about it too much, and do your best to endure those lectures of his. I'm going to get one too from him, though I don't know what reassurances I can offer to him at this point...

[He squeezes one of her shoulders, sighing as he looks down at the ground again for a short moment.]

We'll figure it out. Everything's worked out for us so far.