 be curious, not judgmental
...What?
"Err," Max began with red cheeks, clearing his throat nervously and letting his gaze fall on Genevieve's bumped nose, "I don't think so. I'm... not. Have you met many?" Obviously she had, it seemed, if she had made such an accusation. Or perhaps she was just overly sensitive - he was not a creeper, after all. Or... maybe her turning it back on him was some kind of... defense mechanism so she felt less foolish.
But he didn't think she was being foolish. From the looks of it, she was being curious. Curiosity was an admirable trait. It wasn't unusual for a Ravenclaw to be found doing something out of the ordinary. "Sorry. I'm... pretty quiet in general, I guess. I didn't want to come marching up and startle your train of thought or anything." Though he seemed to have done that anyway.
"Sorry," he said again, then added, "You don't have to... stop because I'm here. I was just... wondering what you were doing, or if you... needed help?" What would she need help with? Max wasn't sure. He just knew it would have been MUCH more awkward if he had casually walked by. It was a much better idea to acknowledge the situation at hand rather than pretend like he didn't notice anything. He knew he embarrassed her, though, and his face had fallen to reflect his regret. "...Or we could pretend like this never happened and I'll continue along?" Whatever made her feel better.
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