I went away for Christmas the other day, leaving the girl I've been dating back in Brighton. We messaged a few times, but hadn't spoken to her in a couple of days. I was kind of doing this deliberately, just to give her some time to herself.
I called her last night, while I was longboarding in the park. She was crying a little when she picked up, she said she gets upset at Christmas, because it reminds her of things she doesn't have, and memories from the past. She doesn't have a family, her mother died of cancer when she was young, and she walked in on her father slitting his wrists when she was a little older.
I ended up longboarding around while using my headphones to talk to her for about two and a half hours. It was nice to talk to her. She said she was worried she was getting emotionally attached to me. Before I knew it I had been all around town on my long board, 15 miles or so.
She said I cheered her up. I didn't really do anything, I just listened to her and talked about my sister quite a bit. I'm glad she ended up feeling a little better though. I think it's a good sign if I can cheer her up without explicit effort.