Yeah, he'll have to figure things out eventually! He might ostrich about it for a little while but there's only so much actively ignoring a guy can do. ;) A little trauma is good for the soul, right?
The mom is quickly becoming my favorite NPC ever. She can know everyone in town and just be like "be gentle with little Sammy, he's fragile and has no idea what's going on around him, bless his heart" to them all.