"I'll help you eat it then," Alex said, sitting with Payton and giving him a gentle smile. He hated to see the other boy have such a visceral reaction. What on earth had Payton's parents done to him? "I'm sorry that you were surprised by your parents like that. I didn't know they would be here," he said, noticing for the first time how sickly Payton's snow-white skin and too-slim frame made him look, and he started to catch on to a couple ways Payton's parents had obviously mistreated him. "You can eat whatever you like, though, your stomach allowing." He didn't say out loud that he thought Payton should put on a little weight, but it was clear he was concerned.