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Dave was crying.
Bro might be a cool guy, might let the kid figure shit out for himself, but seeing him cry was still enough to break his fucking heart. Especially when he was twelve and it was so obviously just emotions he couldn't contain anymore, feelings he couldn't pack down under that developing pokerface.
Scooping him into his arms, rocking him through his little hiccuping sobs, Bro murmured soothingly into his ear; “it's all right, kid, it's gonna get better, we're gonna fix this,” on and on and praying Dave believed him.
The kid might have – thankfully – been a bit of a late bloomer, but the inevitable was happening. Even cradling Dave against him, Bro could feel the tiny softness of his chest. Shit. Dave was only barely dealing with his recently obtained period, and that wasn't even something people would be able to see.
It took a little while, but eventually Bro's soft voice and unwavering support soothed Dave down to soft sniffles. “I w-want em gone, Bro,” he said, his own voice still choked, and Bro sighed.
“Hey, I know, lil man. I know it ain't feel right.” In an abnormal show of affection, he pressed a kiss to Dave's temple. His lil bro looked like he needed it. “Hey, you stay right here a minute, right?”
Bro got up without waiting for Dave's nod, going to the bathroom and digging out their very well-stocked first aid kit. He pulled out a package with a fresh, extra wide tensor bandage in it, and grabbed a few heavy-duty safety pins.
“Take your tee off, dude,” he said as he returned to the futon.
Dave shook his head, eyes welling a little again as he wrapped his arms around his chest.
“Hey, trust me.” Bro gave him a rare smile, just a tiny quirk of the mouth.
Letting out a shaky breath, Dave conceded, slipping out of his shirt and tossing it on the floor. He watched curiously as Bro ripped open the package, unwinding the bandage.
“Back to me, lil man.”
With gentle hands, Bro looped the bandage over his chest, pulling tight and holding the end firmly in place as he wrapped it around Dave's slender body. He peered over his brother's shoulder to check his handiwork. Good enough. He pinned it in place, and took Dave's hand by the wrist, placing his palm over his flattened chest.
“That better?”
Dave made a soft choking sound, then nodded, suddenly twisting to throw his arms around Bro. “... thanks, man.”
“Hey, no homo,” Bro teased, then added, “... that starts hurting, you tell me and I'll redo it, aight?”
Dave nodded again, and Bro hoped like hell this was enough to keep the kid from trying anything drastic; at least until he got enough extra money to buy him a proper binder.