If he cared for her, he would’ve realized by that time how much damage he’d done and removed himself based on that alone. And if he had removed himself because of that, it wouldn’t be the possibility of her being loved by someone else that would make him come back, it would be the fact that he had dealt with whatever part of him he blamed for his previous behavior, fought whatever demons he had been dealing with before, and was ready to love her, correctly.
