To be fair, his own parents looked at Quentin much the same way they looked at Jadyn. The only difference was that, with Jadyn, they couldn't have any influence over what she did or who she chose to be with. With Quentin, they did, for a very long time. He still suffered from the after effects of that - he might not say it, but he could feel it. Every second of self doubt, every shred of self esteem and confidence lost, he knew why. Here, he tried not to let it bother him as much, because he wasn't living in his family's shadow anymore. He didn't have to be the fuckup son if he didn't want to be.
"You are you. I - and Kevin too for that matter - would rather take you as you are, rather than some dressed up plastic fucking Barbie doll like my parents like." What? At least he was telling the truth. "You're real and that's more than I can say for most of the people I know from back home."
He could have said more, but he heard Cecil's voice too. He looked up, knowing the kid had to be worried, even if he had no idea what was going on. Sad was sad, anyone could recognize that. "It's okay, kiddo," he told Cecil. "I promise." And it would be, whether Jadyn believed that or not.