Regulus was dead.
Maybe if he kept repeating it, it would finally sink in. It hadn't worked so far - it didn't feel real - but maybe… Maybe.
He kept expecting to hear from Regulus - a floo-call, a letter, anything - but that would never happen now.
People thought he was coping well - they thought he hadn't been as close to Regulus as he had claimed, or maybe that he was so emotionally challenged that he simply didn't care that his best friend was dead…
Regulus was dead.
Spoonful of cereal half way to his mouth, milk dripping from the slightly tipped spoon, he finally broke down. Huge, choked sobs wracked his frame, snot and tears running freely down his face. He dropped the spoon; it bounced off the edge of his bowl, spilling milk and soggy cornflakes over the wooden surface of the table, milk steadily dripping onto his lap.
His messy sobs turned into desperate screams, his breaths coming out in ragged gasps. He was light headed and felt vaguely like he was about to throw up, but he couldn't stop now that he had started.
Regulus was dead.