Re: You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch
Just before reaching out to keep Cassidy from falling, he accepted Brian's hug and the Brit stood firmly in place, arms wrapped snugly for a brief moment, then he loosened his grip. This man was, after all, a stranger and a man. But he hadn't been able to help giving at least a little bit of warmth and earnest to the embrace. His eyebrows raised in surprise when he saw that Cassidy was crying, and he felt his shoulders droop as he was emotionally gut punched. He listened, though, and didn't speak for a moment. Hogwarts socks - that much was true. Also, yes, he was not broken. But it appeared Cas might've been. Or at least a bit mental. Perhaps both. His safe advice was locked into Brian's mind, though: "Next time you want to drink... buy more socks." A lovely, Dumbledorian notion. Brian gave a small smile just before Jack began fiddling with the doorknob.
He'd been tidied. And he'd been hugged. And nagged. And -
"You are far more to me than I could ever expect you to be."
He was alone. Brian stared at the door, then nearly gasped when Cassidy reappeared. "Yes!" Brian confirmed, confidently. "Right then," but once more, he was alone, "happy Christmas..." The brief, caring interaction and the pity he felt left him more emotionally wrecked than when he'd left the party to come to his office for a shot of encouragement. He reached down and grasped at the outer thigh of his pants leg, then pulled upward, until all of his right sock was exposed. The Hogwarts crest was looking back up at him, upside down, and he dropped his pant leg and ran his hands through his hair. He pulled out his phone, suddenly, from his back pocket, and Googled 'socks', then hit 'Shopping'.