Is everything alright? No, things were about as far from alright as they could be, but Ben was trying to pretend he was handling it. His brother was more or less forcing him to abandon his pregnant wife, but they'd all get through this, somehow. Aldous thought Melody was a criminal who would use unforgivable curses on Ben at the slightest provocation, but sure, yeah, everything was going to be fine.

"Afraid not," he said, leaning on the inside edge of her doorway but not going entirely into her room. He halted for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to tell her this — or, more accurately, the way to explain it that would result in her staying put until he could make it back to her.

"I, uhm. I don't want you to take this the wrong way," he said, rubbing the back of his neck again. There was no way he could say he was leaving without calling to mind when he'd done so just a few days prior, but he wanted to try his best to impress on her that this wasn't the same. He wasn't abandoning her... at least, not by choice.

"I've, ah — I've got to go away a few days. Family thing," he said vaguely, by way of explanation.