Julien waited; he had the patience of a saint if it meant letting Alfie get his thoughts together. He couldn't sit there and watch Alfie suffer in his frustration and the helplessness of the situation without reaching out to him somehow. Words hadn't worked so he used the next best thing and reached out physically, his hand seeking out Alfie's and gingerly laying over the top, fingers on fingers.
The hold was light enough that Alfie could move if he wanted to, but it was there and Julien waited to let Alfie choose what he wanted, to give him some control in this situation where he didn't have any.