After making sure that the officers were gone, Fred returned to the living room with his hands behind his back. He seemed tensed but in his heart he was more than tense.
"I didn't do anything to him." He began, timidly, as if he was afraid of being judged by her. Of course he was afraid of being judged by her, she was the only person whose judgements mattered to him.
Not bothering to look up, Maria replied, "Did I say so?"
He shook his head, "I just wanted to clear that up."
He hesitated before striding near where she sat. He had found their relationship a bit awkward ever since he had come clean with his feelings for her. She completely changed taking offense at any single thing that he did and she had become increasingly distant and he feared that.
