[ he spreads his hands, expression a little sheepish. ] Ta-da?

[ he hesitates for only a moment or two before pushing a chair close to ben and then sinking down into it, reaching over to pat his knee briefly (and yep, there's definitely a big ugly scar on the back of that hand). he knows now, of course, because he can't help but know-- not when ben is this distressed. ]

It's okay, just take a few breaths. I'm not actually nearly as scary as some people like to paint me, and I'm not here to judge you.