There were no guarantees when it came to this kind of thing. Maybe someone would be there, step in, do the right thing – but maybe not. Maybe the fear would be too great, or maybe there just wouldn’t be anyone around. It wasn’t the kind of thing you could control, any more than it happening in the first place, and Matias was painfully aware that he hadn’t simply gotten lucky – that thanks were very much necessary. “Still, thank you,” he repeated, quietly, firmly, only to break into a chuckle– “Not even my students call me sir.” If he had to guess, it was half habit, half sign of respect, but either way, the last person who needed to be using formalities on him was this guy, who’d been a saviour of sorts. “But, wow. Eight years. Long time to retire from. How’d you like living there?” Matias had never been to Mexico himself; one of those things that nagged at him, like the question mark around his paternity – nagged, in the dark, in the very back of his mind. “Matias,” he answered the introduction, offering a hand. “Very glad to meet you, Cesar. And I feel like I should be doing the buying, honestly–” It was the least he could do, after the assist Cesar had offered. “–But I’ve got a pup of my own who’s probably got his paws crossed, or else has made a mess in his crate.” This, he said with a nod to Cesar’s dog, who seemed remarkably well-behaved to his untrained eye. “I could use a drink, though. Would it be weird if I said I’ve got a bottle of tequila that needs drinking?”
Cesar grinned, looking down at his feet for a brief moment. He’d always been a humble one, and that didn’t go away in even this situation. Men of color had to stick together, didn’t they? That was his philosophy, at the very least. “Yeah, well, my father was in the force, too, so we had the whole ‘formalities’ thing kinda ingrained in us from the beginning. You said students -- you teach around here?” he asked curiously, having grown up around the area himself and aware of the educational institutions that surrounded them. Of course, the man couldn’t have been much older or younger than he was, but it still piqued his interest -- hence why he didn’t have much trouble making friends; he could always find something to ask about. “Oh, man, it was like a dream,” Cesar admitted, albeit a bit bashfully. “That’s where my parents grew up, so I decided to go there for university and it just...well, I stayed for that long, didn’t I?” a soft chuckle escaped his lips, followed by a nod when the other introduced himself. “You too, hombre.” A dark brow arched when he spoke of his dog, ready to take the rejected offer and part ways -- and then, the word tequila was uttered. “Not weird at all. Nothin’ better than a spontaneous nightcap,” He laughed, glancing down at Gloria who had her tail wagging. “You don’t mind if my girl comes along, do ya? She’s kind of, uh, essential,” he nodded to the harness that displayed the words “service dog”. “Don’t know if your pup would take issue with that.”