Everything about this suggests that it's not just done out of necessity. That Lego model is especially well-made; a lot of care and effort went into it, more than just making a quick, small copy as a stand-in.
“I guess.” Wolfgang grew up comfortably middle-class; even with three siblings, there wasn't much struggle. And Wolfgang is the oldest, so it was the rest of them that got the hand-me-downs. “I didn't have any friends.”
That's not strictly true, but all their friends lived so far away. When you're eight and don't have any friends, what do you do? Play by yourself. Read books. Do extra homework.
It's still embarrassing to get caught, but he hasn't laughed or looked at them weird or said anything too polite. Wolfgang keeps fiddling with a tiny scrap of fabric.
Wolfgang's head is still down, but they look up at him through their hair. “Do you want to see something?”