It was the most honest assessment anyone had ever given him, and Van felt a lump in his throat that he quickly swallowed. He was scowling down at Brendan's hands, angry that this boy had so easily arrived at these conclusions after Van had spent his entire childhood building them up, carefully laying stone after stone in a wall to surround and defend himself. Part of Van wanted to lash out and put Brendan in his place - on the other side of the wall - and another part was eager to welcome someone into his inner confidence. The two parts battled it out while being reassured by the steady strong movements of Brendan's hands.
Van swallowed again and glanced up at Brendan, his scowl fading. He reached out again and caught Brendan's wrists to tug on them again, higher up his leg, eyes not moving from the other boy's gaze. "You know exactly what's up, huh?" Van said it in a softer and lower voice, slowly drawing Brendan closer and closer.