Don't know what type you were flying or what the temperature and dewpoint were when the engine complained, but carburetor ice does come to mind as the most likely suspect.
I have heard comment that "you don't really need it today", but I
always use full carb heat before pulling power and turning base, unless in a glider or behind a fuel injected engine
Carb ice is much more inconvenient when you need a bit more power to make it to the threshold
So maybe that was the problem when you tried to take off again.
In any case, I agree with everybody else that you made the right decision to abort and take it back to the ramp.
There will be other times when things go a bit wrong and you get flustered as we all have (at least those of us honest with ourselves).
First fly the airplane and once things are sorted out
use the checklist. These are the times the checklist is most needed
