Marietta was struck by the overwhelming urge to reach over and pat him on the arm sympathetically, while saying, 'There, there.' She resisted.

"Well," she said, after a moment. "I obviously don't know you that well, or this friend of yours, but in my experience, people who stick around like that are worth their weight in gold. Even if he does only love you as a friend, that's still a hell of a lot, you know? A lot of people don't even have that much." She gave him a sympathetic look. "Which probably doesn't help emotionally, since emotions aren't rational, but hopefully it's something?"