Giving up hope that Govinda would turn around and come back from Mathura, the gopis left that spot. They gave up hope that he was just fooling them and would actually come back. They spend two days in complete lamentation.

Since Govinda was headed to Mathurā (vi) without returning, they gave up hope that he would return, though he said “I will return.” They began singing of his activities such as his promise to protect them: tasmān mac-charaṇaṁ goṣṭhaṁ man-nāthaṁ mat-parigraham gopāye svātma-yogena so ‘yaṁ me vrata āhitaḥ I must therefore protect the cowherd community by my natural powers for I am there shelter, I am their protector, and indeed I am everything to them. I have taken a vow to protect my devotees. SB 10.25.18 And they sang of his promise to return (āyāsye) as proof that he would come. Doing so, they gave up sorrow (viśokā). Making known their separation from their beloved accompanied by deep pain arising from their broken hopes, they gave up their sorrow and fear. In this way they passed their days, tolerating the great suffering of not seeing him. Kṛṣṇa himself says: dhārayanty ati-kṛcchreṇa prāyaḥ prāṇān kathañcana pratyāgamana-sandeśair ballavyo me mad-ātmikāḥ Simply because I have promised to return to them, my fully devoted cowherd girlfriends struggle to maintain their lives somehow or other. SB 10.46.6 Uddhava says: gāyanti te viśada-karma gṛheṣu devyo rājñāṁ sva-śatru-vadham ātma-vimokṣaṇaṁ ca gopyaś ca kuñjara-pater janakātmajāyāḥ pitroś ca labdha-śaraṇā munayo vayaṁ ca In their homes, the godly wives of the imprisoned kings sing of your noble deeds—about how you will kill their husbands’ enemy and deliver them. The gopīs also sing your glories—how you killed Śaṅkhacūḍa and delivered them from his hands. The surrendered souls sing of your killing the enemy of Gajendra. The sages sing of your killing the enemy of Sītā. We Yadus sing of your killing the enemies of Vasudeva and Devakī. SB 10.71.9 They passed their days and nights in this manner. This is described in various verses describing their pastimes.

They gave up hope that the king of Gokula (govindasya) would turn and again enter Gokula, though they had hoped for a long time that this would happen, since he was controlled by his devottees and could not tolerate others’ suffering. “How did they maintain their lives?” They sang about activities like his killing Pūtanā or about favorite activites like the rāsa dance, and gave up lamenting (viśokāḥ). They passed days and nights because they could maintain their lives by singing about his activities. Or they had various sorrows (viśokāḥ) because they sang about him. This increased the pain of separation. Or though they all sang, they passed their days and nights in sorrow. Or they could not even pass their days and nights because they gave up hope that he would return. The details are not given because Śukadeva was in great pain. However Lalita-mādhava describes the pastimes at that time. Or they gave up lamentation by experiencing their love as if directly by singing about his activities and becoming absorbed in them. Some devotees explain this according to the eternal pastimes. “According to Padma Purāṇa (go-gopa-gopikā-saṅge yatra krīḍati kaṁsahā: there Kṛṣṇa plays with the cows, cowherds and gopīs) and Bilvamaṅgala, even today the pastimes can be seen in Vṛndāvana. How is it possible that he gives up Vraja completely?” That is true. What he did can be completely explained according to the manifested pastimes. The sages explain this pastime described in all Purāṇas. The eternal pastimes are most confidential and are generally hidden by the sages, who follow the will of the Lord. However, some great devotees hint slightly at this indirectly or briefly sometimes.