He breaks the gaze on his own this time, unable to hold it. How did he get over him? Cesar remembers thinking of him when he and Lazarus kissed again for the first time afterwards. He remembers how frequently Ryuzaki popped into his mind after that, unwanted and impossible to disperse. He remembers him leaning in close to speak while deafening nightclub music rattled their bones, and how even then he'd still been caught like a charmed snake.

They aren't pleasant memories. He feels like a mouse trapped in tar.

As his answer, he lifts his coffee mug and points at it, lifting his eyebrows. Then he types out, 'Lots of work. Late nights. Keep busy. Don't think about him if you don't have to.'

It's not the greatest advice, but it's what he's got.