Is there anything this guy is not afraid of? How does he get up and leave the apartment very morning when he is afraid of everything? Every situation, every emotion, every possibility leaves him terrified to some degree.
You're describing an agoraphobic person.
You're lacking the insight that lets him deal with those fears. Don't tell me it's his love for Lois. His love for her is the cause of the fears. Where is the "thing" that keeps him from locking the door and pulling the blinds and never leaving that apartment?
In my mind it's a very simple "thing," but I'm the reader.
