A 2nd grader told me he's scared to see his friend again and he doesn't want to go to school tomorrow

I have a 2nd grade student who was extremely close (best friends) with the 6 year old who passed away a few days ago. Today, we had a counselor come to speak to them. They did a great job. I'd say all of the kids are handling it really well. They are all pretty unaware of the concept of death, which made it a little easier to explain. <br><br>That being said, this particular boy is really struggling. He talks about it a lot, he always wants me to give him a hug, he wants to sit on someone's lap during transitions, etc. Today at recess, he said to me through tears, "I don't want to go to school tomorrow or, I don't want to see (boy's name) again." He is still at the age where he doesn't really understand he won't see him again. He's not fully aware he passed away. I think he thinks he's just waiting until he sees him again or something. <br><br>I just gave him a hug and let him talk. I told him it's okay to feel sad and that I'm so proud of him for talking through his feelings. I told him if he wants me to give him a hug tomorrow, I will (he's already a hugger so this probably doesn't mean much to him, but I wanted him to feel like it was something special for him). <br><br>This was at like 3 PM. I really hope he feels ok or at least is able to go through tomorrow without any issues.