spam

[It catches him off guard, and it takes him a moment to return it, if only for that reason. He also doesn't really understand why it might be hitting her this hard - they haven't talked much about her mother, but he's touched and surprised and has immediately felt like he needs to comfort her, too when he hears how emotional she's getting.

So he puts his arms around her and rubs her back, fighting past the tightness in his chest and focusing on just breathing. He's tired of feeling broken and helpless and he definitely doesn't want to cry, so he breathes and focuses on calm.]

Thank you.

[She's listening, and she does understand, and it's just good to hear that someone other than Erik understands. That it wasn't a terrible mistake to open up to her.]

I'll be alright.