Barrel froze with his fork halfway to his mouth.

[I]She[/i] was afraid of ruining things? Why would she need to? Did he do something wrong? Did he say something that made her think that? Barrel didn't think so, but his siblings always said he was the dumb one...

"You didn't!" he blurted out. "I'm...I mean...um..."

Barrel quickly shoved the bite in his mouth before he [i]really[/i] said something stupid. He felt his cheeks flush and tried to bite it back.

Why did [i]he[/i] have to be the one to do this?

He swallowed hard, then awkwardly scratched the back of his neck.

"...[i]I[/i] thought things were going well. B-but if they're not...um...I'm...sorry? For whatever I did to make it [i]not[/i] go well, and...um..."

Barrel felt the flush in his cheeks get warmer.

"I-I'll be right back," he said quickly. "I think something's burning."

Nothing was. He knew it, she knew it, and he didn't want to sit there and let his face grow anymore gray. Barrel quickly scampered into the kitchen. To keep up with the lie, he checked on the dumplings, then loudly closed the oven to be sure Agatha heard. He then went to the sink, flushed his face with cool water, then wiped it on his sleeve.

Damn it, he probably just screwed it all up. Barrel listened for a moment, and tried to clear his head. Or maybe he didn't? Just get in there and apologize. Get it over with. He carefully peeked out. Agatha didn't seem mad, so far as he could tell. Maybe...confused?

He shut the door and took a breath. Good, he could probably still salvage this. Barrel cleared his throat, put up a proper decorum, and went back to the dining room.

"Got it just in time," he said, to play on his earlier excuse. "So, um...I..."

[I]Come on. You've got this[/i]. Barrel briefly recalled Lock's advice about sincere gestures and that things that made him feel better would make her feel better too.

"I guess...what I [i]meant[/i] to say is I...I get it. I want this to go well too. So, um. Sorry. Again."

Barrel gave her an awkward grin to try to seal it.