Oop, sure does draw some air out of him. But that's more than fine. César tightens his arms around the younger, and smaller, man. He moves just slightly to make angle the hug to be the most comfortable.

And César pretends like he didn't hear that sob, because that's exactly what Rich needs him to do. If César's learned one thing recently, it's that processing trauma doesn't happen all at once; it's a bumpy ride full of ups and downs. He just hopes that he helps Rich have more of the former than the latter.

Rich lost both parents the day his mother died. And, eventually, he lost his brother, too. It had just taken many more years than the short time it took for César to lose Rex the rest of the way.