'Deep emotional scarring'. Yes, that was an apt description, Devin allowed privately. He'd had a few chances for healing along the way, rare glimmers into a happier frame of being that he'd abandoned - both out of punishment, and out of fear. The scars had themselves been shaped into his habits, constricting his movement and strangling his judgement.

Patience. "You're going to need it," he replied, injecting some self-deprecating humor into the conversation. Devin had never pretended to be well-adjusted, and it was going to take him a long time to change; some things never would, he believed. "Though you seem to have noticed that already." He sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I suppose I should let you get back to this," he said, gesturing to the cords.