She was afraid of his sadness. She was afraid to elicit his feelings. She was also afraid not to. She was afraid she would bring it up, and there would fall that most inept failure between them: total silence.
Last night, I dreamt that I was alone. My family was gone, I had no friends, and no one to care about. No one wanted to know me, or even acknowledge my existence; there was no love in my life, and it terrified me.